The Untold Stories
by A.I.T. - Author In Training
Summary: A collection of random one-shots, short stories, requests, and anything else that I feel like putting in. Includes plotless fluff, random adventures, and more!
1. Resemblance

**Resemblance**

"You've never had pizza before?" Fred froze and dropped his slice of Ray's pizza. His mouth hung open in shock.

"Well, I've never had _American_ pizza before. Only original pizza." Kairi analyzed the greasy triangle laying in front of her. She awkwardly poked at it and quickly wiped the grease off on a napkin.

"Original pizza? Ray's is original. It says so on the sign."

Joe shook his head, amused. "Sam says he and Cade will be here in about five minutes by the way." He put his phone back in his pocket.

"Yeah, yeah." Fred waved his hands dismissively at Joe. "But about this whole pizza thing. You have to try it." Fred pushed Kairi's plate closer to her. "It'll be way better than your silly 'original' pizza." He leaned forward expectantly.

"Silly original? No, no, no." Kairi crossed her arms and stared at Fred head-on. "I'm from Italy. The birthplace of pizza."

"Um, pizza is American, Kairi. Everyone knows that." He leaned back with a smug on his face.

"Nope. Definitely Italian. Along with lasagna, gelato, and calzones."

"You can't just claim lasagna." Fred stood and gripped the edge of the table.

"It's true!" Kairi matched him in stance.

Joe pushed the two back into their seats. "How about we sit back down and wait for Sam and Cade to get here."

"Good idea. Sam will know that pizza was created in America."

"Except that it wasn't."

Joe's eyes shifted nervously back and forth between them. He wasn't sure how serious these two were about this. He gave audible sigh of relief when Sam and Cade finally arrived. Cade said something to Sam, who nodded in return. Sam walked towards them, while Cade went off to the bathroom.

"Sam!" Fred gleefully jumped up and wrapped his arm around his friend. "Would you so kindly explain to Kairi here that pizza is an American food?"

"It isn't." Sam pushed Fred's arm off his shoulder slid into the booth next to Joe.

Fred's grin fell. "What?"

"Pizza was invented in Italy around 997 AD."

Fred plopped back down into his seat, a furrowed brow on his face. "But-"

"Told you." Kairi triumphantly held her chin up and pumped her fist for emphasis. She noticed Fred's upset expression and frowned. "Tell you what, I'll try some of your American pizza if you try some of my Italian pizza."

Fred looked up at the mention of a challenge. "Deal." He slid the pizza slice back in front of her. "But I guarantee you Ray's is better."

Kairi rolled her eyes and lifted the pizza to her mouth right as Cade joined them at the table.

"Hey guys." She sat next to Sam and reached for a slice of pizza.

"Hey, Cade." Joe and Fred responded.

Fred didn't take his eyes off of Kairi, who still held the pizza in front of her mouth. "Well?"

Kairi was staring at Cade. Her eyes were wide and her mouth hung slightly agape.

"Kairi?" Fred waved his hand in front of her face. "Hello? You still there?"

Kairi jumped. "Sorry. What?" She kept her gaze on Cade, who was now chatting with Sam about hydrogen bonds. The two were clearly still in study mode.

Fred looked at Cade, then back to Kairi. "Do you two know each other?"

Cade glanced out at Kairi, just now noticing her presence. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't see you there. I'm Cade, and you are?" Cade held out her hand for Kairi to shake.

Kairi numbly shook Cade's hand. "I'm Kairi."

Cade shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Kairi's gaze made her feel like an animal in a zoo. "Um, have we met before?"

Kairi shook her head. "I'm sorry. Really. It's just, you look exactly like someone I met once, but you couldn't be her. I met her," Kairi paused, stopping herself from saying something she shouldn't have. "I met her at a place far away from here."

"Cade is from Australia. Maybe you did meet her once."

Kairi shook her head. "No, that's not what I meant by far away. Like, the place I was talking about isn't near here at all. It's not even possible to really go there. Well, of course it's possible, you just have to meet certain requirements." Kairi bit her lip. "Just forget I said anything."

Cade leaned into Sam and whispered in his ear. "She sure does like to yabber, doesn't she?"

"I'm sorry, Victoria. I mean, what did you say your name was again?" Kairi blushed with embarrassment.

Now it was Cade's turn to stare. "Cade, but Victoria was my mother's name." She studied Kairi. "Did you know my mother?"

Kairi's mouth open and closed like a fish out of water. She had no idea what to say.

"That's impossible. My mother died over three years ago." Cade got in Kairi's face. "Just who are you?"

"It's possible I may have known your mother, but who can really say?" Kairi looked away, avoiding the conversation. "I never tried that pizza!" She scooped it up and tried to put it in her mouth, but Cade lowered her arm.

"Did you know my mother?" Cade's tone had a desperate ring to it. "She left when I was seven. I only remember so much. How could you possibly know her?"

"I can't really explain why or how, but yes, I think I did, and your father too."

"My father?" Cade perked up.

"I used to live in a place where," Kairi thought about how to phrase her lie, "a place where lost travelers used to roam a lot. I kind of helped them get to their final destination." Kairi shrugged and gazed at Cade. "You look just like her you know. She was very family-oriented too. Both her and your father were very upset that they couldn't return to you. I'm assuming you have sisters, right?" Cade nodded, right now Kairi was her only focus. "They talked about you three a lot. Love isn't a strong enough word to describe how they felt about you."

"Where did you come from?"

"I'm from Italy." Kairi broke eye contact, nervous and guilty about lying.

"How long have you lived in Brooklyn?"

"Technically, I haven't even started living here yet. I got here this morning and didn't really think about finding a place to stay." Kairi pursed her lips in thought. "Didn't realize that until now actually."

"Stay with my sisters and me."

"What?"

Sam spoke up. "Do you really think Adrianne will like that?"

"No, but Adrianne hates everything." Cade nodded toward Kairi. "She knew my parents. Though I don't really understand how. Still, if they trusted her, I do." Cade absentmindedly fiddled with her charm bracelet. "I'll take you home after we're done here."

Kairi blinked, not sure what had just happened. "Um, okay. Thanks."

"That's nice and all, but I believe you have a deal to follow through with." Fred once again offered Kairi a slice of pizza. "Eat up."

Kairi smiled at Fred's determination. "Fine, fine." She picked up the pizza slice one last time. She took a bite and thoughtfully chewed on it. "Hmm…"

"Well?" Fred eagerly leaned forward.

"It's okay." She paused to swallow. "But Italian pizza is better."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - So yea, this chapter was plotless, but I felt like including it because it had some Fred/Kairi fluff and explained where Kairi would be staying in Brooklyn. And yes, there will be a future chapter explaining how Kairi knows Cade's parents. Anyway, The Untold Stories will be updated randomly. For a full explanation on what to expect from this and when I'll be posting Sour Revenge, check my profile. If you liked what you read, a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Prom Potential

**Prom Potential**

What about Chloe Drishner? She was cute, if you could get over the fact that she was the tallest girl in the school. Fred mentally crossed her off the list. He could not go to prom with a girl who was two feet taller than him.

"Fred?"

Then there was Taylor Lopi. She had a lisp, but was still easy on the eyes. She got crossed off the list when Fred remembered one of his sports buddies saying that they had already asked her out. Fred drummed his fingers on his desk and continued down the list of potential prom dates.

"_Fred_?"

Fred's heart stopped when he realized how limited his choices were. He could not go stag to his junior prom. Even Sam had convinced Cade to go with him. As friends, he added. He mentally rolled his eyes at that. _Yeah right_. Joe was going alone, but only because he claimed to be waiting for someone. Whatever that meant. For a year now he'd been saying that he had some special girl who was coming soon, but he never knew exactly when. He had even turned down a couple offers from girls to go out because of it. A few really pretty girls, Fred noted. Whoever this girl was, she must be very special to Joe.

Fred focused back on his problem. He would not be going alone. He would make sure of that. Even if that meant, he grimaced, going with Sienna, his faithful stalker. Unfortunately, she was starting to look like his only option. He only had a month left to find a date.

"Fred!"

Fred's knees slammed into the underside of his desk. "Ow!" He gave his heart a few seconds to return to a normal beat rate. A few students behind him murmured and tossed puzzled glances his way.

"Sorry. You zoned out on me. We only have ten minutes left of class and this assignment is due today." Kairi tilted her head. "You okay?"

Fred blinked. Kairi. Kairi was on option. His mouth curved upwards in a half smile. "Yeah, actually. Sorry, I was just thinking about prom and stuff."

"Okay. Well, what did you get for thirty?"

Fred frowned. Kairi had gone back to her biology notebook like he hadn't said anything at all. That was not the reaction he wanted. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms behind his head in an attempt to show off his muscles and gain her interest.

"It's just, you know, I don't have a date yet. I was thinking about asking Sienna after school."

"What does that have to do with homeostasis?" Kairi had confusion written all over her face.

Fred pressed his lips into a thin line. "It doesn't."

"I'm sure Sienna will be thrilled to go with you, but we should really finish this assignment."

Fred sighed and looked down at his mostly blank worksheet. He jotted down a few, quick answers while thinking of other methods to ask Kairi out. He slowly grinned as an idea struck him. He wasn't going to give up that easily.

* * *

><p>Round two began after school. Fred grabbed his practice helmet off the locker room bench. Like always, the competition cheerleaders and baseball players had practice at the same time. Fred and Kairi always walked home together afterwards. That's when Fred planned to ask her to prom. After he showed off for her at practice though. They had a game on Friday and they were expected to put full effort into practice tonight anyway. Fred smiled to himself. Kairi wouldn't be able to turn him down. Hopefully. His smile quickly disappeared at the thought of rejection. The thought hadn't crossed his mind until now. What if she already had a date?<p>

Fred marched out to the field with his fellow teammates while continuing to think about his current predicament. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking about asking Kairi sooner. She was the obvious choice. The two had become progressively closer over the years. Kairi was always willing to go on his adventures with him, he'd even convinced her to "borrow" _The Book_ with him once. Joe was definitely not happy when he found out about that one. And it's not like Kairi wasn't attractive. Fred thought she was pretty, really pretty. She took care of herself like the popular girls and other cheerleaders, but she didn't overdo it like they did. She wasn't afraid to eat greasy foods. She didn't cover her face with over-the-top make-up. She also knew sports stuff. That was the biggest perk to Fred. Not like all the stats or anything, but she knew the history of them and how they were played. Of course, she was technically older than most sports and could remember when stuff like football or basketball was invented. Still, it was definitely cool to Fred that a girl actually understood sports.

The baseball team walked passed the cheerleaders on their way to the field. Fred immediately turned his charm on. He tossed Kairi a gleaming smile and added a wink. She responded by giving him a confused, scrunched-up look. She turned her head over her shoulder to look behind her, as if to see who he was actually giving that look to.

Fred frowned and continued onto the field. _Okay_, he thought, _this is going to be harder than I thought._

* * *

><p>Fred was acting strange, even for Fred standards. First he was zoning out in the middle of biology, not that he contributed a lot to the answers when they worked together anyway, but still. Then he started talking about prom dates. Kairi chuckled to herself. She picked up on Fred's hints immediately. She knew he was going to ask her to prom. She just couldn't wait for him to finally work up the nerve to do it.<p>

He talked about how he was going to ask Sienna to prom. Kairi couldn't figure out why. She knew Fred couldn't stand her. Did he really think it would make Kairi jealous or something? She shook her head at Fred's foolishness. _Silly boy_, she thought.

Of course Kairi would say yes to Fred. She'd even turned down a few offers from other boys in anticipation of Fred asking her. She liked him, more than she ever admitted to him. She couldn't pin point the exact moment when she started liking him, she just knew she did. She had this gut feeling that they were meant to be together. They had been on all sorts of adventures together. He was so cute when he talked about his heroic ideas and fantasies. Kairi didn't mind going along as his "princess-in-the-tower" girl. She thought it was sweet when he acted all prince-like towards her. Of course, there were plenty of times when the roles were reversed and she had to save his butt.

Kairi shook her head to clear her thoughts before she got too distracted. No time to think about that now. Cheer practice was starting in five minutes. She waited patiently while chatting with a few of her cheer friends.

The baseball team walked by them as usual on their way to practice in the field. Kairi spotted Fred right away. Mainly because she recognized the emblazoned '17' on his jersey, but also because she swore she saw him wink and flash a dazzling smile her way.

Kairi bit her lips to keep from laughing. She had to turn away before it became too obvious to him. She'd definitely have to work on his flirting skills. The over-confident, pretty-boy style did not work well for him.

Kairi noticed Sienna standing behind her. She was twirling her hair and puffing her chest out, acting like the center of attention as usual. A sly smile crossed Kairi's lips. _I could have fun with this._ She giggled playfully.

Kairi focused her attention on the cheer coach and the routine start of practice announcements; competition on Friday, try-outs for next year's captain next month (Kairi made a mental note to practice for that), and bake-sale fundraiser next week.

Kairi gave one final glance at the baseball players, now running drills, before lining up to practice the school fight song. If Fred wanted to pursue Sienna, she wasn't going to stop him. She was lover of all types of love, and was always eager to help a lovesick friend in need.

* * *

><p>"All right, boys! Fifteen minute break! I want you back on the field fully geared at four sharp!"<p>

"Yes, coach!"

Fred hustled off the field and pulled off his helmet. He put his shoulders back, raised his chin, and slowly walked up to the cheerleaders, who were also beginning their break.

"Hey, Kairi." Fred leaned against the metal fence dividing the bleachers from the football field.

Kairi's face turned to him and she waved at him to come over.

_That's more like it_, Fred thought. Happy that his plan was finally working. She must have noticed his excellent work on the field today. His spirits lifted with the thought. Maybe he could get Kairi to go with him to prom after all.

"So I overheard Sienna. She's still looking for a date. Want me to get one of the cheerleaders to tell her you want to ask her out?"

_Wait, what?_ "Uh…"

"Or would you rather ask her in person yourself?" Kairi smiled. "That's really sweet of you actually. I'd recommend getting her some flowers or something too. Girls _love_ that stuff."

"I'm not asking Sienna to prom."

"That's not what you said earlier." Kairi titled her head, studying him. "Did you change your mind?"

Fred thought he detected a hint of hope in her voice. He instantly knew he was wrong. Kairi really seemed like she wasn't not interested in him. He still had to try though. Not yet. It just didn't feel right at the moment. For some odd reason, he felt as strong urge to impress her and make her like him. He'd never had that feeling before. He looked into Kairi's large, light brown eyes. _So pretty_.

"Well, actually, yeah. I do have someone else in mind I want to ask." He stretched his arms, flashing his muscles. "I've been putting in a little extra effort today to get her attention."

"She's here?" Kairi's head whipped around the field, looking for the mysterious girl Fred was impressing. It was just the cheerleaders and the baseball players. "So, she's a cheerleader? But not Sienna?"

Fred nodded. "One of the best."

"Karlie? Our captain?" Kairi stared at the senior girl. Along with being the cheer captain this year so was also head of the track team and the women's basketball team. "_Oh_, that makes sense. She's totally your type. Athletic, pretty, and popular, but doesn't she have a boyfriend?"

Fred frowned. Kairi could not be this innocent. She loved love, romance, and all that sort of stuff. She was usually the one to tell him when some girl was flirting with him. Why couldn't she pick up on this? "Guess again."

"Hmmm…" Kairi tapped her chin. "What's with all these guessing games anyway? You can't just tell me?"

Fred smiled. "I could."

"Then who is it?"

Before Fred could respond, a whistle blew. "Back to practice girls!"

Fred frowned. _Well, crap_. "How about I just tell you on out walk home?"

Kairi put on a happy grin. "I look forward to it."

* * *

><p>Fred wiped his forehead with a rag. The coach had really worked them hard the last hour of practice, but that was to be expected when you had a game coming up. He collected his practice clothes and threw them in his backpack next to some overdue homework and some leftover lunch.<p>

He jaunted out of the locker room, eager to catch up with Kairi so that he could finally ask her to prom. He pushed down all his nervousness. He had to ask her now. Kairi was one of his best friends. She'd make a great prom date. Provided she said yes. They were going to have so much fun.

Fred faltered. Why did that not feel right? He and Kairi were friends and he wanted to have a nice friend to take with him to prom. Nope, it definitely did not sound right to him. He thought about the feeling that he got around Kairi. He was happy. His heart always sped up a little bit when he saw her.

Fred chewed his lip in thought. They didn't necessarily have to go with Kairi to prom as friends. What if they actually went as a couple? The idea had never occurred to him before. Kairi would make a great girlfriend. But Fred didn't exactly have the best track record with girlfriends. The longest relationship he'd ever had was only a few months long and he'd never exactly had a serious girlfriend before. Fred knew he couldn't treat Kairi like his past girlfriends. He'd need to try hard for her. The thought of them together felt right to him.

Fred shrugged. _Why not? _The worst that could happen was that she'd say no, right?

He spotted Kairi waiting for him in front of the school. She had changed out of her practice clothes as well and was back in her usual pink sweater and cream coloured skirt. Fred took a deep breathe. _Let's do this._

"So, ready to tell me all about this future prom date?" Kairi teased him and playfully bumped into him as they started to walk home.

"She's really pretty, likes to wear pink – but it looks good on her – she can talk a lot sometimes – but she's interesting to listen to, and her voice takes on this cute, lyrical happiness to it when she does. What else?" Fred paused, pretending to be thinking. "Well her past is a little sketchy. See, she used to live in Italy until she died. So now she's like this really awesome zombie, but the nice kind."

"Is she now?"

Fred stopped. He had not expected her reaction to be so calm. She had seemed so uninterested in him.

Kairi stopped as well and turned to look at him. "Yes?"

"You-" Fred shook his head in disbelief. "You're not surprised?"

Kairi smiled sweetly at him. "You're not the best at dropping small hints."

"Well, this is great." Fred reached for her hand.

Kairi pulled back. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to hold your hand?"

"You still haven't asked me anything yet."

Fred smirked at her. "Kairi, would you like to go out with me and be my girlfriend?"

That one tripped her up. "Girlfriend?"

"Yeah, you know. I'd be the boyfriend, you'd be the girlfriend. We'd go on dates and stuff. Do all the couple things."

"I thought you just wanted a prom date?"

Fred frowned and looked away. "It's okay. If you want, we can just go to prom as friends. I just thought it'd be nice to go as a couple. I really like you, but if you don't feel the same way it's fine. As long as we can still go on crazy adventures and stuff."

Fred felt Kairi put her hand in his. She squeezed it. "Of course we'll still go on adventures and stuff." She moved so Fred could look into her eyes. "But we'll go on crazy adventures together as a couple.

Fred beamed. "That would be perfect." Fred turned towards the direction they were walking. "Shall I take my lovely girlfriend home?"

Kairi stepped next to him. "I'd love that."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - Sorry for the delayed update, but school has gone into overdrive and it's hard to find free time. I'll try to get out at least one chapter a week. I update my profile pretty frequently with updates though. So if you want to stay informed, go there.**

**So yea, this chapter officially gets Kairi and Fred together as a couple. It takes place just a few months before the last chapter in _The War of Time_. I didn't intend for it to be this long, but it sort of just happened that way. If you enjoyed a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	3. Meetings and Greetings

**Meetings and Greetings**

"So you're really back for good? No more Draylon? You're officially a New York resident?"

"For the hundredth time, yes. We have officially moved into New York and we are not planning on returning to Draylon." Sydney rolled her eyes and smiled up at Joe. "I promise."

"Sorry. I wasn't sure when you were coming and now that you're finally here, I just can't believe it. I missed you." Joe leaned his forehead against Sydney's.

"I missed you too." She gave him a quick peck on the lips. "It's nice to finally get away."

"I believe we were promised pizza?" Skyler awkwardly stood next to them.

"Oh, yeah. Pizza!" Sydney stepped away from Joe. "_Please_, tell me Ray's is still in business?" When Joe nodded, Sydney practically melted with joy.

Joe chuckled. "Pizza fan?"

"She hasn't had greasy foods in years." Skyler teased her.

Sydney nodded. "Strict training diet. Not exactly my choice. But now I don't have to worry about that anymore." Sydney clasped her hands with excitement. "I am going to drown myself in grease." She licked her lips in anticipation. "Let's go." She grabbed Joe and tried pulling him away.

Joe smiled and followed her.

"What about Anna?"

Joe stopped. Right, Skyler. Joe turned to face Sky and crossed his arms. "She's not even home right now. She's staying with a friend."

"Oh." Skyler looked crestfallen.

"I'm sure we can stop and see her after we get pizza." Sydney nudged Joe's side. "_Right_?"

"What?"

Sydney crossed her arms and whispered to Joe. "Skyler moved here for her. I understand you're just being a big brother, but take it down a notch. I promise I will keep an eye on him for you."

Joe sighed. "Fine. Yes, we will go see Anna after we get pizza."

Skyler perked up. "If we got her before, she could come with us."

"Don't push it."

Sydney tightly wrapped her arms around Joe's waist, a form of affection and a warning to be nice to Skyler. Joe put his arm around her shoulder in return.

"We need to hurry. My friends will be waiting." The three of them began to walk.

"Your friends?"

"Yeah, Fred and Sam. You kind of kidnapped them, remember?"

"Oh, right." Sydney blushed and looked down. "Forgot about all that."

"And Kairi lives here now too. She's actually dating Fred, which is still weird to think about."

"Kairi's here? I haven't seen her since we found out we were cousins. She said she was going off and that she would be fine. My life got so busy after that, I kind of forgot to check up with her." Sydney rubbed the back of her head guiltily.

"I'm sure she'll be gladder to see you again. Ever since I mentioned to her last year that you were coming back to New York, she's been so excited."

They all rounded a corner. "So where is your place located? I can't wait to see it."

"Syd got us a penthouse near Broadway." Skyler smirked and proudly walked next to them. "It is amazing. I can't wait for us to customize it and fill it with tons of cool stuff."

"A penthouse? In Manhattan? Isn't that expensive? And far from Brooklyn."

"Oh, it's very expensive." Sydney gave Joe a sympathetic smile. "And don't worry about me being too far from you. I'm going car shopping soon. I'll be able to come see you anytime I want."

"And I'll be able to come see Anna."

Joe decided to ignore Skyler. "How can afford that?"

Sydney smugly grinned. "Draylon gave me a fancy credit card to cover all my expenses until I finish college. I plan to milk them for all their worth."

"You're going to college? Where?" Joe asked, wondering if they could possibly go to the same university once he graduated. He reminded himself that he needed to start applying to colleges in a few months.

"I'm not actually, but Draylon doesn't need to know that."

"But I still have to go school?" Skyler raised an eyebrow. "Not fair."

"At least I have a high school diploma. I'm not going to make you go to college, but you will at least finish high school."

"But Earth schools are so far behind Draylon. It'd be pointless for me to go."

"Then it should be easy for you. I'll be expecting straight A's."

Skyler grumbled to himself and crossed his arms.

"So, if you're not going to college, what do you plan to do?"

Sydney smiled and threw her arm around a still grumpy Skyler. "Skyler and I are starting our own business."

"Not if I have to go school, we're not."

Sydney punched Skyler's arm. He winced and rubbed the now sore spot.

"Yes, we are. It's too late to back out now. I pulled the only string I had to get us this first job."

Joe studied the two of them. "What kind of business?"

"Dance."

"Dance?"

"New York is definitely the place you want to be for the performing arts, right? It just made the most sense for us. We both love to dance. We're used to working together physically. I mean, we've training together for _years_. Fighting isn't that different from dancing. Sky's my best friend. Even if he gets grumpy when I make him go to school." Sydney teased him.

Skyler looked at her and smiled. He threw an arm around her shoulders. "I'm still excited about this though. It'll be fun to perform or choreograph for shows. Plus-"

"We'll be our own bosses." Sydney and Skyler both nodded decisively.

Joe pretended to not be bothered by the fact they could complete each other's sentences and that they still had their arms around each other. Joe grabbed Sydney's hand and pulled her back to him. "That sounds fun."

Sydney softly laughed. "Don't worry. It's just business. Like I've told you before. Sky and I are like brother and sister, nothing more."

Joe smiled, feeling silly that he was worried at all. He trusted Sydney. "Sorry." He blushed. "I believe you. I know you wouldn't ever lie or hide something from me."

Skyler shot Sydney a sidelong glance. "Well-"

Sydney quickly silenced him with a glare and an even harder punch than she had given him before. "Don't tease him. Joe has nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, sorry. I was just joking." Skyler pursed his lips and rubbed his bruised arm.

They had finally reach Ray's Pizza and walked inside. Joe spotted Fred, Sam, and Kairi and led Sydney and Skyler over to the booth where they were sitting.

"Sydney!" Kairi ran up to Sydney and gave her a tight hug.

"You obviously forgot our little talk about personal space." Sydney squirmed.

Kairi stepped back quickly. "Sorry. It's just, it's been so long!" She smiled brightly.

Sydney shook her head and smiled. "It's nice to see you again too."

Kairi blushed again and slid into the booth next to Fred. "Tell me everything that happened with you since I last saw you. Don't skip on any details." She gave Sydney a wary eye. "Nothing bad has happened, right? At least nothing that caused you to, well... you know."

Sydney shook her head. "Stuff has and will happen, but nothing like that."

"Who are you?" Fred and Sam examined Sydney and Skyler, waiting for an explanation. "And why is Kairi acting like you're her best friend?"

"Oh! That's right! You guys don't know each other! This is Sydney and Skyler!" Kairi gestured to them like it was some big reveal.

Fred and Sam responded with blank stares.

"I guess that wouldn't help you much either. Sydney's my cousin! Skyler's basically her best friend. They're time travelers from Draylon. Sydney's actually-" Kairi stopped herself from saying something she shouldn't have. "She's been gone for a long time, but now she's moved back to New York, right?" Kairi looked at her hopefully. Before Sydney could answer, Kairi saw that Sydney and Joe were holding hands. "Oh my gosh!" She looked excitedly back and forth between the two of them. "Are you two dating? Like officially together? So you are staying! I always knew you two would end up together!" Kairi giggled. "This is amazing! I am so happy for you!"

"For the record, there's actually a lot more to me than just being Joe's girlfriend and a time traveler, and Skyler's not just my best friend." Sydney awkwardly sat down next to Joe in the booth.

Before the boys could say anything, a phone rang. Sam looked down as he noticed it was his phone. He looked at the caller ID and smiled.

"Great, here we go again." Fred sighed.

Sam rolled his eyes and walked outside to answer his phone. Sydney looked to Joe for an explanation. "You'll see." He put his arm back around her shoulder.

"Maybe it'll be good to have you around, Sydney, now Joe won't be the fifth wheel anymore." Fred smirked.

Joe reached across the table to whack Fred in the head. "Would you shut up?"

"No."

The gang looked over at the door as the bell above it chimed when Sam and someone else entered. They slid back into the booth next to Fred and Kairi.

Fred smirked. "This is Sammy's little girlfriend."

Sam blushed. "She's not my girlfriend."

"Oh, sorry, I forgot. They're friends with benefits."

"Fred!" Sam blushed even more. He sighed. "This is Cade." He gestured to the curly red-head sitting next him. "And you're Sydney and Skyler, right?"

They nodded in response. "Nice to meet you."

"You too." Cade shyly looked down at the menu.

"Don't worry about her. She likes to pretend to be shy, but once you actually get to know her, she won't leave you alone or stop spazzing about whatever latest science discovery she's made."

Cade glared at Fred. "Just because I like learning new things, doesn't mean you have to get upset when you can't understand them."

Fred frowned. "Whatever, nerd."

Cade rolled her eyes and looked back at Sydney and Skyler. "I promise I'm not that much of a nerd."

"You're the definition of a nerd."

Cade's eyebrows pinched together. Sam sympathetically patted her arm and shook his head, reminding her that Fred wouldn't back down and it wasn't worth the argument. He knew Cade and Fred didn't hate each other, they just liked to make fun of each other a lot.

"So, Kairi said you guys are time travelers from Draylon? Where's that? I've never heard of it before." Sam leaned forward with interest.

"Uh…" Sydney and Skyler exchanged glances, deciding how much to share. "It's not that special. Just a small place for time travelers to go to. The Warper Academy I there, and that's where we went to school."

"There's a Warper Academy?" Sam looked to Joe. "Have you heard of that? Maybe you should go there, maybe actually learn how to use _The Book_."

"Hey, I've gotten a lot better with _The Book_." Joe pouted and slouched down.

Sydney kissed him on the cheek and whispered something into his ear. Joe smiled and sat back up.

"You're that special girl Joe's been waiting for, aren't you? Man, it _will_ be nice to have you around. Joe's been acting so weird for the past year. Do you know how many cute girls he's turned down? He went to prom alone this year."

Sydney stared at Joe. "You went to prom alone?"

Joe shrugged. "We've technically been dating for over a year now. I would've felt like I was cheating on you or something."

Sydney blushed. "That's sweet." She gave him another peck on the cheek.

Their food arrived at the table. Three large pizzas with various toppings. Sydney immediately dove for a slice and ate half in one bite.

She moaned. "Thank you, sweet gods of greasy foods. I needed this."

Fred laughed. "I like her, Joe. She's got my approval. Where have you been hiding her?"

Joe put on a flirty grin. "Sorry, I'll be sure to show her off more often."

Sydney's blush deepened, but she managed to return the flirty grin. "Only if _I_ decide _you_ let out."

"And thanks for making it awkward again." Skyler spoke as he reached for a pizza slice.

Sydney teased back, "As your legal guardian, I can keep you inside too if you'd like."

"No thanks."

"Let them flirt. It's cute." Kairi was sitting across from them eagerly watching Joe and Sydney's exchange.

"Not so cute when you've been around it all day."

"Well, welcome to our little group guys. Anybody who likes pizza is a friend of mine." Fred happily munched on a slice.

Joe rolled his eyes and looked back at Sydney. He leaned into her and kissed her. His forehead and nose lingered on hers. "I'm so glad you're finally back."

Sydney leaned into him. "It'll be nice not to worry about any crazy happenings anymore. I don't even remember what it's like to be a mortal. It's good to be back."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - Sorry the chapters in this story aren't that interesting. This one obviously takes place after the end of _The War of Time_ and most of it was just explaining what Sydney and Skyler are going to do in New York and how they met the rest of the gang. I definitely changed some stuff around. In case you didn't notice, I discontinued _The Here and Now_ and it's not really related to my series anymore.**

**If you enjoyed, a favourite and a review would be very much appreciated! Thanks for reading!**


	4. Moving Worlds

**Moving Worlds**

If Sydney wasn't holding Joe's hand, he would've walked away a long time ago.

"Do I really have to do this?"

"_Joe_," Sydney gave him a disappointed look. "Be nice. It will be okay. She can handle herself, and I promise Sky won't hurt her."

Joe grumbled to himself and knocked on the door. A short, olive-skinned girl with black hair opened the door.

"Yes?" The girl looked at Joe and tilted her head. "Aren't you Anna's brother?"

Joe nodded. "Yeah, can you go get her for me? I, uh, need to see her for a second."

The girl disappeared into the house. A few moments later, Anna appeared.

"Joe? What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" Anna saw that Sydney was standing next to him. "Sydney! When did you get back?"

Sydney smiled. "Not too long ago. That's not why we're here though."

"Then why-" Anna spotted Skyler waiting behind Joe and Sydney. "Skyler?" Anna's face instantly lit up. "What are you doing here?" Anna pushed past Joe and bounced up to Skyler.

At this point, Sydney was holding onto Joe to prevent him from holding Anna and Skyler apart.

"I moved here with Sydney." Skyler nervously scratched the back of his neck, as if second guessing his decision. He hadn't stopped asking when they were going to leave Ray's to go see Anna. Now that he was here, he seemed to be doubting himself. His nervousness was very obvious.

Anna seemed oblivious however. "Really?" She paused to frown. "But I thought you were training to be a time agent? How are you going to do that in New York?"

"I sort of change plans."

"Oh?"

"How about we let these two catch up on their own?" Sydney whispered to Joe and tried to lead him away.

"What? No way!" Joe stubbornly resisted her.

Sydney frowned at him, deciding she was going to have to try a little harder to get him to give Skyler and Anna some alone time. "I just assumed you'd want to go to my new home and do a little catching up of our own. I brought over my old bed." Her voice had taken on a low and alluring tone while her hand ran flirtatiously down his arm.

Joe bit his lip, caught between spending some quality alone time with his long-lost girlfriend and making sure his little sister stayed young and innocent. "But-"

"_Please_?" She batted her eyelashes at him. "I've _really_ missed you."

Joe sighed, giving in to his hormonal teenage boy side. "Fine."

They walked past Skyler and Anna, who were still awkwardly talking to each other. "I'll see you later, Sky. Try not to get lost on the way back. Oh, and I'm sure Anna would love to hear about why you moved to New York."

"Wait, what?" Skyler turned to them. They had already disappeared around the corner. His nervousness instantly shot up. He was not expecting to be left alone with Anna.

"What was she talking about?"

Skyler looked back at Anna. "Oh, um, I'm not sure," he trailed off.

"Skyler, why did you move to New York?" Anna asked. She had a worried tone.

"It's nothing bad. I promise," Skyler said, picking up on Anna's uneasiness. "I- Syd was taking such a big chance on moving here just to be with Joe. Well, I guess she was going to leave either way, but she chose to go to New York because of Joe. So I followed her lead and came to New York for you."

Anna's face was blank. "For me?"

"I'm sorry. I feel so stupid. I just think you're really cute and you seem like a great girl and I thought we could go out or something." By the end of his speech he was mumbling.

Anna barely understood the last part. "You want to go out with me? Like as boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"Well, yeah."

Anna blushed. "I've never had a guy move worlds just to be with me before. I've never really had a guy do anything for me before," she said, thinking back on her past middle-school and freshman year boyfriends, not that any of them were serious or lasted long.

"I'm pretty special I guess." Skyler winced and looked away. "Sorry. I know I can come off as a little over-confident sometimes."

"I think confidence is really attractive."

Skyler stared at Anna. "Really?"

Anna's lips turned upwards and her head bobbed up and down excitedly. "Definitely."

"So… did you want to? Go out that is. I completely understand if you don't. I mean, you don't know me very well and it probably seems a little creepy that I came here because of you."

Anna was still processing the fact that Skyler had left his old life behind just to be with her. She had a hard time believing him. Of course she liked him. She knew she did the moment she stepped on his toes over a year ago. He was too cute to resist. "I'd love to."

Skyler's dark brown eyes lit up with joy. "You have no idea how much of a relief that is. I was worried I moved all the way out here for nothing."

Anna giggled. "I can't believe you came here just for me."

Skyler shrugged. "It just felt like the right thing to do." He looked into her eyes. "There was something about you when we first met. I still can't figure out what it was, but I knew I wanted more of it." He flashed her a smile. "I'm glad I can get more."

Anna's cheeks reddened, "Have you ever even been to New York before?"

"Not exactly."

"How about I go tell my friend that I'm heading home early? I could show you around, help you get acclimated. Or you could show me your new place! Is it nice?"

Skyler thought about how Sydney and Joe had just left to go there to be alone. He inwardly cringed. "Maybe we could go see a movie or something instead? Like a date?" Skyler tentatively reached for Anna's hand. Once he had it, he grasped it firmly.

Anna's eyes sparkled. "I think that would be perfect."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - There's still about five chapters left to post before I start posting Sour Revenge. Don't worry, it'll be here before you know it! If you enjoyed, a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chemistry

**Chemistry**

"Can anyone tell me what Mexican General Santa Anna is known for doing 1838?" Mr. Malone looked around the room as he waited for a student to answer.

"He was exiled," Sam answered before anyone could even raise their hand.

"Incorrect. Would anybody else like to give it a shot?"

Sam fell back in his seat. _What?_

"He held a funeral with full military honors for his amputated leg," Kairi answered from behind him.

"Correct. Thank you, Kairi. Now, what was the purpose of the safety coffin?"

Sam raised his hand without thinking about it.

"Sam? Care to try again?"

Sam dropped his hand. "Um, it was…" Sam's eyebrows pinched together in thought. "I think it was…" his voice trailed off.

"Anyone else?"

"They allowed people who were accidentally buried alive to let others know that they weren't dead." Again, Kairi answered from behind Sam.

"Excellent."

Sam heard Fred snicker next to him. He shot him a glare, which only made Fred snicker more. Sam sighed and fell back into his seat. So he missed a few questions, it wasn't the end of the world. It certainly didn't require Fred to laugh at him.

Before their Unusual History teacher could ask another question, the bell rang. Without waiting for the teacher to officially dismiss them, the class hurriedly picked up their things and left.

"What's wrong, Sam? Upset that you don't know everything?" Fred stood up and put his arm around Kairi's shoulder.

"It's just a few history questions, Fred. It's not that big of a deal." He pushed his glasses back up. "How do you know so much obscure history anyway, Kairi? It's like you were there."

Kairi bit her bottom lip. "Just comes naturally to me I guess."

"Yea, but-"

"You're just jealous because I have a girlfriend who's smart, cute, and awesome. While Cade's just smart."

Sam shook his head and continued to walk to his locker. "Cade is not my girlfriend, Fred."

"She should be." Kairi spoke up. "Everyone already thinks you two are dating anyway. You guys would be _so_ adorable together! Didn't you have fun with her at prom last year? I live with her. We talk all the time. You know she likes you, right?"

Sam blushed and hid his head in his locker. "Of course I enjoyed prom with her, but Cade's just a friend who I can actually talk to about science, history, and-"

"And other nerd stuff. We get it, but that's exactly why you should date her. Who else would put up with your geekiness? You need a girlfriend, dude. I have Kairi, Joe has Sydney, and even Anna is dating that Skyler guy. You're the only one left."

Sam rolled his eyes and tucked his AP Chemistry book under his arm. "We're just friends."

"Why are you so scared to ask her out? Don't act like you're not into her."

"I'm not scared. I just-"

Fred smirked. "Sure about that? Because here's your chance."

Sam felt Cade's presence next to him before he saw her. "Hey, Sam. Ready for chemistry?" Cade paused when she noticed that Sam was blushing, Fred was smirking, and Kairi was eagerly looking back and forth between them. "Is everything okay?"

"We were just talking about how Sam is the biggest scaredy-cat I know."

"I am not."

"In that case, I believe Sam had something to ask you Cade."

Cade eyed Sam. "You did?"

"_No_, I didn't. Fred's being stupid."

"You'd be so much happier in a relationship, Sam." Kairi sympathetically smiled at him.

"Relationship?" Cade tightened her grip on her textbook. "What is she talking about?" Cade eyed Kairi in a 'you-better-not-have-told-him-anything' sort of way.

The warning bell rang, reminding students to get to class soon. "Our lab partner relationship. Come on, we'd better get to class."

"Oh." Cade looked down, a mixture of relief and disappointment on her face.

* * *

><p>Sam and Cade's hands brushed each other as they both reached for the chemical bottle.<p>

"Sorry." Sam pulled his hand back and let Cade grab the bottle and add it to the mixture they were making. _Stop acting so weird, Sam. Fred and Kairi were just messing with you._

"Did you hear about the red fox found in Yosemite?" Cade carefully measured out the chemical before adding it into the flask.

"The what?"

"A few researchers discovered a rare Sierra Nevada red fox at Yosemite. It's really interesting because a fox like that hasn't been seen there in almost a century."

"Oh, really?" Cade had this fascination with animals. She was planning to study zoology in college and hopefully work with a zoo or research team in the future. She had this way with animals that Sam thought was unnatural, but still fascinating. Growing up in wild Australia had probably helped her a little bit.

"Mhmm. They hope that this means that there are more out there. They're on the endangered species list right now. It'd be great if they could find more though."

Cade's eyes dazzled like they did whenever she got talking about something science related. Sam's lips turn upwards. He loved that Cade cared about knowledge. Joe and Fred were his best friends, and he liked hanging out with them, but it was so nice to be with Cade and talk about this kind of stuff. He needed someone like that in his life.

_You know she likes you, right?_

Sam shook his head. Kairi was just talking too much like she always did. No way had Cade actually felt that way towards him. They were smart people. They could think through their emotions… right?

"-acid?"

Sam started. "What?"

Cade tilted her head and gave him a puzzled look. "I said, can you hand me the hydrofluoric acid? We need it for the next step."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Sam measured out the acid and handed it to her. She added it to the clear solution.

"Where were you?" Cade smirked at him. "It's not safe to zone-out while working with chemicals, you know."

"I was just thinking about something Kairi said to me earlier."

"What came out of that busy mouth of hers this time?"

"Nothing really. She and Fred were just teasing me about us like usual, and Kairi said that you liked me." Sam laughed to himself. "Crazy, right?"

Cade almost dropped the beaker she was holding. "She did?" Cade turned her face away to hide her blush. "That is crazy. Just Kairi talking too much like always I guess."

"That's what I thought. I mean, you could never like me in that way. You and I are smart enough to think about things and not just respond to our hormones."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, all our friends dove into their relationships headfirst. They didn't think about anything. They just did it."

Cade chuckled. "That's how love works, Sam. It makes you do insane things like that. Not everything has to be thought through or boiled down to a science." Cade grinned at him. "You really need to learn to take a risk or two sometime."

Sam thought about how Cade jumped on any chance she got to explore or learn something new. She never seemed to put much thought into it. She trusted her instincts and went for it. Sam was about to respond, but then he realized that Cade had never officially denied Kairi's claim. "So, Kairi was telling the truth then? You _do_ like me?"

"I didn't say that." Cade kept her face focused on the experimental mixture. She added a few more chemicals. The mixture was now a soft pink colour.

"But you didn't not say it."

"You think too much."

"I just want to understand what's going on with us."

"What us?" Cade studied him. "No offense, Sam, but you don't really seem like you are capable of liking someone that way." She shrugged. "You put too much thought into things instead of just acting. A good relationship requires some spontaneity, which you don't have."

"I can be spontaneous."

Cade shook her head. "No, you can't."

"Yes, I can."

"No-"

Sam kissed Cade zealously on the lips. Cade fell back, stunned.

Sam went wide-eyed and turned away. "See? I can be spontaneous."

Cade remained silent and still.

Sam started to panic. "Oh, jeez. Cade, I'm sorry. I don't know where that came from. Don't be mad." Sam could feel himself hyperventilating.

"Kairi was right."

"What?"

"Kairi was right. I do like you, and if this spontaneous side of you comes out more often, maybe you are capable of falling in love with another person."

"Of course I am. I have emotions and it's not like I don't have hormones. I _am_ an eighteen-year-old boy."

Cade grabbed the last acid to pour in, trying to keep herself busy and not focused on Sam. "So, what does this mean then?"

"Uh…" Sam hadn't thought that far. He hadn't thought at all. It felt… nice. He smiled to himself. "I guess I could use a girlfriend, and you seem like a good choice."

Their solution had now turned hot pink, matching the colour of Cade's cheeks. "Oh." She was speechless. This was not how she had expected chemistry class to go.

"So, um, yeah. Cade, do you want to be my… girlfriend?" Those were words Sam never thought he'd say.

Cade set the hot pink solution down. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to hear those words."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - and now all my couples are officially together. I can't to write more about them and show off the different dynamics of their relationships. I'm probably going to post a few chapters of them going on dates to show that. But next comes weddings and kids! ;) If you enjoyed a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	6. Let's Get Hitched

**Let's Get Hitched**

Joe softly stroked Sydney's hair. She warmly smiled in her sleep and snuggled closer to him.

"Morning." Sydney's voice was muffled by Joe's chest.

"Happy anniversary."

Sydney looked up at him through half-lidded eyes. "I haven't been sleeping that long have I? It's still June, right?"

"Yeah, but three years ago today was when you came back to New York and we really started dating."

Sydney shook her head and chuckled. "That makes it Anna and Skyler's anniversary." She stretched out her body and rolled over onto her stomach. "Our _actual_ anniversary is in January."

Joe kept his comments about Anna and Skyler to himself. He told Sydney he'd give Skyler a chance and let up on him and Anna. He knew that Skyler was a big part of Anna's life. Anna appeared happy with her relationship at least, but Joe knew that protective-big-brother part of him would never go away.

He loved Sydney and he also understood that Skyler was a big part of her life. Together, they'd become very successful dancers and choreographers. It was little annoying that he had to share her so much. There were definitely times that he wished he could have her to himself all the time. Getting married would be his best option for getting to spend more time with her. Actually, that didn't sound like a bad idea to Joe.

"I still choose to think of it as a special day for us. I was thinking we could go out and have a nice dinner. The Plaza is having a summer solstice ball tonight. That could be fun."

Sydney laughed again. "But it's Netflix night. I was looking forward to lounging around in comfy clothes. Besides, I'm _still_ behind on Earth television."

"Okay. We'll watch some stuff now and then in a few hours we'll go out."

Sydney wrapped the sheet around herself and sat up. "_No_. I have a meeting today. And _you_ need to get back to your dorm and grab an overnight bag because you forgot to bring one yesterday."

"I had other things on my mind." Joe pulled Sydney back down next to him and kissed her softly.

She happily complied. "What time is it anyway?"

"About eleven."

Sydney groaned. "Why do you do this to me? You know whenever you don't stay the night, I wake up at seven like a normal person."

"That is not normal. And it's not like you don't wear me out just as much."

Sydney smirked. "Not my fault you can't handle me."

"Is that a challenge?"

"As much as I'd like it to be, my meeting starts in two hours and I need to get ready. So you should get going." Sydney leaned over to kiss him. "But I'll see you tonight, okay? Sky will be gone and we'll have the whole place to ourselves. Is that enough of an anniversary celebration for you?"

"As long as I get to take on that challenge."

* * *

><p>Joe walked into Sydney's penthouse to see a very comfy Sydney lounging on her plush sofa surrounded by her extravagant décor. After she and Skyler had moved to New York, they proceeded to decorate their place with the most expansive and trendy stuff they could find. They claimed that they were both too used to a life of luxury to live like average mortals. Joe knew that was only part of it. Sydney also enjoyed spending Draylon's money as a form of silent revenge. She only had the card for another year, so she was throwing some crazy expenses on there.<p>

She was wearing black yoga pants and one of Joe's old high school shirts. Her hair was tied up in a lopsided messy bun. It was her usual lazy Netflix night attire.

Joe silently snuck up behind her to give her a surprise kiss. "Hello, beautiful."

Sydney laughed. "Hello you." She moved over so Joe would have room to sit down next to her. "So since you were in such a romantic mood this morning, I queued up some bad romantic comedies. I figured we could both laugh at the silly plot lines."

Joe grinned. "What are our options?"

"Our first choice is a stereotypical story about two high school friends who grew up together and never thought to be more than friends. But one night fate steps in and causes sparks to fly at prom." Sydney spoke the words overdramatically to add emphasis to their silliness.

"Tempting."

"Our second choice is about two people who catch each other's eyes from across the room at a wedding. They have a wild night of fun, but when they go their separate ways, they realize that they have fallen in love, but have no way to find the other person. They must search all of New York to find each other and risk it all for a happily ever after."

"Maybe."

"Our final choice is my personal favorite. It's a story of friends-with-benefits who get drunk one night and wake up married the next day. Just when they're about to get a divorce, they realize there may be more to their relationship than they thought."

"Why don't we get married?" The words came out of Joe's mouth before he could stop it.

"No, it's called _Friends-With-Rings_. Stupid title if you ask me."

"I meant you and me."

Sydney busted out into laughter. Joe just stared at her in response. Sydney noticed and paled. "Oh god, you're serious." She jumped off the couch and raised her hands in a 'calm-down' gesture. "Are you crazy? We can't get married!"

"Why not?"

"Well, for starters, I'm dressed for Netflix night, not a wedding." She gestured from her hair to her outfit.

Joe stood up and pulled her close. "You look beautiful as always." He passionately kissed her.

For a moment, Sydney melted into his arms and kissed back. She pushed him away when she remembered the situation they were in. "Joe, I love you, but we can't get married."

"But why not? You just said you love me, and you know I love you too. Didn't you ever picture us getting married?"

"Of course I have. I just always pictured it happening years from now. Like after you graduate college and we'd lived together for a while."

"We basically live together now. I'm always here or you're always back at my dorm with me. And why should age matter? All you need is love."

"There are plenty of times when we're not together, like when you're in class, or I'm at rehearsal, or when you're at book training with your uncle."

Joe titled his head and gave her a look that said he knew she was just grasping at straws now. "Look, if you didn't want to get married because you didn't like me that way, I'd understand, but you do like me that way, so why not get married?" He grasped her hands and held on tight so she wouldn't run away. He got down on one knee in front of her. He felt her tense up. "I may not have a ring on me, and this certainly was not how I was planning to spend my night, but I love you, Sydney. Will you marry me?"

Sydney sighed and ran a hand over her face. "Why do I feel like I'm going to regret this?" She looked down at Joe and smiled. "Yes. Let's get married."

Joe felt bad about not having a ring. He looked around the room for something to put on her finger, but all he saw was a black marker. He quickly drew a circle around her ring finger. "It's only temporary. I promise. I'll get you a real ring soon."

Joe jumped up and pulled Sydney in for a kiss. This time, Sydney let herself fully melt into it. "Let's go." Joe pulled Sydney towards the door.

It took a few seconds for Sydney to register what was going on. "What? You mean now?" She dug her heels into the ground to stop Joe.

"That's the plan. We're like fifteen minutes away from city hall. It can't be that hard to elope."

"Elope? Joe, most couples stay engaged for a while then have weddings."

"An ex-goddess and a boy who owns a magic book containing all of time? I don't think we qualify as a normal couple. This seems fitting for us. Come on, it'll be fun. Let's just jump into this headfirst."

Sydney rolled her eyes. "Let me grab my car keys."

* * *

><p>Sydney anxiously checked her phone while they waited on a bench inside city hall. They had been told they could get married tonight, but they'd have to wait their turn.<p>

"Expecting a call?" Joe caught that this was the tenth time Sydney had looked at her phone.

"Actually, yes. There's something I-"

"Five hundred seventy-three."

Joe glimpsed down at the slip of paper he was holding. "That's us." He stood up and reached for Sydney's hand. "Ready?" He winked at her.

Sydney smirked and took Joe's hand. "As ready as I'll ever be."

They were led into a small chamber where a stout women in a black dress suit patiently stood against the back wall.

"Good evening. I'll be your wedding officiant. This will only take about two minutes. So don't blink, or you'll miss it." She'd probably said that joke a hundred times today, but she laughed like it was the best thing she'd ever heard. Joe and Sydney awkwardly smiled and waited for her to calm down. "Now, I have to ask you two a few preliminary questions before I can wed you two. First, are you currently under the influence of any drugs, alcohols, or any other items that may inhibit your thought processing abilities?"

They both answered no.

"Good. Next, are you both here willingly and not forcibly by any nature?"

They both answered yes. They squeezed each other's hands, both impatient to get on with it. After a few more required and somewhat annoying questions verifying that they were sure they wanted to do this and were fully aware of what they were getting into, the woman finally got to the main event. She instructed Joe and Sydney to stand facing each other and to grab each other's hands.

"Now, do you, Joseph Arthur, take Sydney Myer to be your lawful wedded wife?"

"I do," he answered without hesitation.

"And do you, Sydney Myer, take Joseph Arthur to be your lawful wedded husband?"

Sydney shook her head in disbelief. "I still can't believe we're doing this." She smiled at Joe. "I do."

"Then by the authority invested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may-"

Joe pulled Sydney in for a kiss before she could finish. The woman awkwardly smiled as the two had their moment.

They broke apart for a moment, leaning the foreheads against each other and letting their noses touch. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Not that I don't love sweet moments like this, but we have other couples who need to come in. Have a lovely night you two. Congratulations!"

They thanked her and hustled out of city hall.

Joe looked around the street and bit his lip.

"Having second thoughts already? That didn't take long." Sydney smirked at him.

Joe gave her one his cocky grins. "Never." He tugged her in for another kiss. "I couldn't just abandon _my wife_ like that, now could I?" He spoke the word wife with love.

Sydney blushed. "Well _husband_, what's next?"

Joe looked down. "I was trying to think if any jewelry places would be open this late, but I doubt there are any. I really want to buy you a ring. You deserve one." He ran his thumb over her empty ring finger.

Sydney gave him a sly smile. "I have a better idea."

* * *

><p>"Tattoos?" Joe looked at Sydney with an incredulous look on his face.<p>

"Why not? You said it yourself, we're not a normal couple. So why should we get normal wedding rings? Besides, these guys are great! It's where I've gone for all my tattoos and piercings in the past."

She absentmindedly traced her collarbone where Joe knew she had one tattoo. He was never sure if it was the silhouette or a dancer or a fighter. The black tattoo covered one of her many battle scars. She had another simple tattoo on her upper right rib cage of the word 'passion' written in a fancy, curvy script. She had made sure the tattoos were small enough that she could easily cover them up for a performance if she needed to. As for piercings, she'd only had her left tragus and her belly button done. That was all she had so far, but Joe remembered her saying something about wanting more.

Joe stared at her and shrugged. "Let's do this."

Sydney grabbed Joe's hands and pulled him inside the building. "Hello, Josh."

A heavily tattooed man at behind the counter and looked up when they came in. He grinned when he recognized Sydney. "How's it going, Sydney? Here to get those hip tattoos we talked about?"

"Not tonight." She held up her and Joe's clasped hands. "We just got married, and we're in need of some rings."

Josh nodded. "Well congrats on getting hitched. What did you have in mind?"

* * *

><p>Joe's ring finger still tingled. The process didn't hurt as much as he thought it would. He slowly traced the design. The date, June 21, 2014, was written on the underside of their fingers. They had each other's initials on the topside of their fingers in an intricate script with wavy lines connecting on the sides of their fingers connecting the date and the letter. Joe smiled, the S on his finger had turned out really good.<p>

"Thanks again, Josh." Sydney quickly paid with her Draylon card.

"Anytime. Congrats again!"

They walked out the store hand in hand and slowly headed back to Sydney's place.

Sydney leaned her head on Joe's shoulder. "I did not think this would be how I would spend my day. I got engaged, I bought a house, and then I got married. All in one day."

Joe stopped. "You bought a house?"

Sydney blinked. "Oh, yea! Everything's been happening so fast I forgot to tell you. My meeting today was to finalize all the paperwork. Now, I'm the owner of a house. Actually, I was going to ask you if you wanted to move in together. But," she looked down at their now-tattooed fingers, "I think I already know the answer to that."

Joe beamed down at her. "That sounds amazing."

Sydney grinned. "Glad you think so. I want to remodel parts of it, so we won't be able to move in for a while. They think everything should be done within a month though. It's four bedrooms, large open floor plan, and I'll have to show you everything once I get the keys."

"Why don't we go back to my dorm?"

Sydney gave him a quizzical look. "Why? My place is closer. And isn't Fred there anyways? We wouldn't be alone."

Joe put on a secretive grin. "I was thinking we could grab _The Book_ and go on a honeymoon. That's usually what follows a wedding."

"We can't just disappear for two weeks, Joe. No one even knows we got married."

"Relax. We'll go on a honeymoon for as long as we want, and when we're done, I'll warp us back to tonight so we can tell everyone. Then, we could even go on a second honeymoon afterwards." He winked at her.

Sydney smiled. "Where did you have in mind?"

"There's this beautiful place called Corfu Island in Greece. There's an amazing cove there that's been untouched by people. I went there with this really cool girl once. You remind me of her actually."

Sydney suppressed her giggles. "Oh, really? Sounds fascinating. I can't wait to see it."

"I can't wait to show you." He paused and put on a flirty grin. "Also, I believe there was a mention of me not being able to handle you? I'd very much like to prove that wrong."

Sydney returned his flirty grin. "I'd very much like to be proven wrong."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - So I could've divided this into two chapters, but decided to throw it all into one long chapter. And I know elopements don't exactly work like this in real life, but for the sake of this story they do. :P Anyways, if you enjoyed a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	7. Welcome to the World: March 25, 2015

**Welcome to the World: March 25, 2015**

"Joe get up."

I felt someone roughly push me around. I moaned and clutched my pillow. "Five more minutes." I succeeded in pulling away from the rude hands and tried drifting back to sleep.

If only I was so lucky. "Not five more minutes, now!" The hands returned to shake me.

I grumbled and swatted the hands away.

"Joe, we need to get to the hospital."

I lifted my head and saw the owner of the mean hands through blurry eyes. Sydney stood with her hands on her hips glaring down at me.

"Is someone hurt?"

"You will be if you don't get up." She grabbed my arms and pulled me off our bed.

I landed with a hard thump. "Ow." I rubbed my back where I had fallen. "Okay, okay. I'm up, I'm up. What is it?"

"My water just broke."

* * *

><p>How did I end up here? I was barely twenty and already having my first child. I loved Sydney, but this kid wasn't exactly planned. We hadn't even been married for a year yet. She'd gotten pregnant on our honeymoon.<p>

I looked over at her trying to relax in the passenger's seat. She had her eyes closed and her chest rose and fell softly as she took deep breaths. Of course, I was terrified, but I was also excited to have a kid and I already loved it. I knew I'd have a kid eventually anyway. I'd met my own great granddaughter, so it had to happen sometime. I just didn't think it would happen so soon.

Which brings me back to my original question. How did I end up here?

We had just moved into the new house after Sydney had completed all the renovations she wanted. We had been inviting our friends over to check out the new place. Kairi was sitting at our kitchen counter. I was pretending to listen to her excited babble. Apparently today was some special day for her and Fred.

"Where's Sydney?" Kairi paused her happy rant and looked around our kitchen, as if she was expecting Sydney to just appear out of one of the cabinets.

I looked at the digital clock on the microwave. "Huh, she's usually up by now. It's almost eleven."

"Maybe she's in her studio?"

Sydney had converted our top level attic into a dance studio for her and Skyler to work out of. It was a really pretty room. The ceiling was made of stained glass and the sunlight shone in during the day and reflected off the walls covered in long mirrors. There was a small storage room in the corner where we kept old stuff we didn't really have much use for. I could easily see how the room greatly inspired them with their work.

I shook my head as I answered Kairi's question. "No, the house would be shaking from music." She must've been in our bedroom still. "I'll be right back."

I got up and left towards the bedroom. I gently pushed open the door. "Sydney?"

She was curled up under the sheets, deep asleep. I walked up to her and softly shook her. "Sydney? You feeling okay?"

She mumbled in her sleep and rolled over.

"Sydney, it's almost eleven. You never sleep in this late. Are you feeling okay?"

"Mmm… fine, leave."

I crossed his arms. I was not going to give up that easily. Something was clearly not right with her. "No. You never sleep in like this. Something's got to be wrong. Sit up."

I sat down next to her. After a minute of struggling I forced her to sit up. She glared at me.

"Alright, I'm up. What do you want?" She snapped at me.

I looked at her with concern. "Are you sure you're feeling okay? You don't look too good. And you never snap at me like that."

"I'm-" She paused. She got a panicked look on her face and pushed me out of the way. I fell onto the floor as she bolted out of the room.

"I know you're ticked that I woke you up, but was that really necessary?" I slowly stood back up and winced at the pain in my lower back.

I looked in the direction that she had taken off in. I frowned and walked towards the bathroom where Sydney was on her knees vomiting into the toilet. I leaned against the door frame. "Still think you're okay?"

Sydney looked up and glared at me.

888

"Dang, not even married for a month and you're already getting sick." Kairi sympathetically looked at Sydney.

Sydney's only response was a glare.

I set a bowl of soup on the table in front of Sydney. "There you go."

Sydney started eating it and immediately cringed. "It tastes like hot water."

"You know I'm not a good cook. My skills are limited to toast, sandwiches, and ice."

"And even you manage to screw those up sometimes."

"I just held your hair back for fifteen minutes, you owe me. And why are you being so snippy anyway? This is not like you at all. Are you really that sick?"

Sydney rolled her eyes and went back to her soup.

"How do you think you even got sick to begin with?" Kairi asked.

Sydney shrugged. "How am I supposed to know? All I know is I feel nauseous, I have a migraine, and I'm pretty sure I have a fever." She placed her hand on her forehead. "You don't think it's one of those cold things again, do you?"

I shook my head and suppressed my laugh. As a goddess, Sydney had never had any diseases or infections. Her first cold had been quite the experience for her. "Do you want me to take you to the doctor?"

Sydney shook her head. "No. I can drive myself."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

888

"Kairi is going to be so upset with you." Sam shook his head at Fred.

"Come on. She won't be that mad." Fred heard the uncertainty in his own voice.

Sydney walked in, but the boys were so wrapped up in their conversation that they didn't notice her. "Hey. Have you two seen-"

"You're right, she won't be mad. She'll be crying her eyes out." Sam interrupted.

"No, she won't… right?" Fred bit his lip in uncertainty.

Sydney tried to speak up again. "Where's-"

Sam interrupted again. "You forgot the day you two first kissed. Kairi will hate that. You know how she is. Every milestone in your relationship, even the small ones, means everything to her."

"I didn't forget. I just didn't plan anything special. She won't be mad. Kairi doesn't get mad."

"She'll still be upset. And that's supposed to be better?"

"Guys, I really need-" Sydney attempted to talk.

"I'll make it up to her."

Sydney pursed her lips in annoyance. She marched up to the boys sitting on the couch in her living room. She picked Fred up by the collar of his shirt and threw a threatening glare at him.

"Hi, I'm Sydney. Joe's wife. Remember me? I'm looking for Joe." She leaned her face in close. "Where is he?"

"Kitchen." He spoke quickly and pointed towards the kitchen. He winced as if Sydney had hit him.

Sydney dropped him on the couch and smiled. "Thank you." She stepped over his legs and walked into the kitchen.

"Today is just not a good day for you, is it?" Sam snickered and teased him.

Sydney walked up to me in the kitchen with a scared expression on her face. I rushed up to her, thinking the worst. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

She let out a shakey breath. "We need to talk."

"What is it? Is it serious? Are you going to die?" I quickly wrapped my arms around her and held her close.

She laughed and pushed me away. "No, it's nothing like that."

"Then what is it?"

"I'm pregnant."

"You're what?" I looked at Sydney, shocked and wide eyed.

Sydney nodded and shrugged. She smiled, but there was a sadness hidden in it. "I didn't plan on it either, but here we are."

I sat down heavily in the chair behind me, "I'm still in college. I don't have a job. I'm only nineteen," he looked at her still shocked, "Please, tell me this is a joke."

Sydney sighed and shook her head, "No, this is really happening."

I looked down and back up, still not processing the situation. "I'm really going to be a dad?"

Sydney nodded once more. "Yes, and I'm going to be a mom, or I am a mom… I guess." She awkwardly patted her stomach.

I let out a puff of air, a small grin appearing on my face. "I'm going to be a dad." I sat back and stared off into nothing, a lazy smile playing along my lips.

"So that's why you two got hitched so early. I knew it." Fred had a smug grin on his face. He looked at Sam. "Shotgun wedding. You owe me ten bucks."

Sam sighed and rolled his eyes.

I suppressed the urge to yell at my friends for listening on our private conversation. "We got married because we love each other, Fred. No need to be jealous." I stood up and wrapped my arm around Sydney's shoulder.

Fred frowned. "I'm not jealous."

"Don't you have a date with Kairi?"

Fred looked and the clock. "Crap. I'm going to have to call her."

Sam snickered. "I can't wait to hear this."

The boys finally left us alone.

"So what do we do now?" I nervously rubbed the back of my neck.

Sydney was rubbing her temples. "I'm going to go lie down. This migraine is killing me."

I looked at her with a pitying expression on my face. "Come on. I'll help."

How on earth were we going to deal with this?

* * *

><p>We checked in at the hospital and they asked us the questions we expected to be asked. When did your water break? How far apart were the contractions? Blah, blah, blah. I let Sydney answer most of the questions because frankly, I didn't know he answers. I'd been too busy packing up the car and getting over the shock of the situation.<p>

We were given a room right away. Luckily for us, not a lot of people went into labor at four in the morning. The doctor came in to look at Sydney and explain approximately how long it would be before the baby could be born.

"Are you getting an epidural?"

"No." Sydney answered before the doctor had even finished the question. "Sorry, um, no. I'm not getting an epidural."

"Are you sure? It's really the only safe pain reliever I would recommend."

Sydney rapidly shook her head. "It's okay. We've opted out of all that."

"Well, if you change your mind, and most women do, just let one of the nurses know." The doctor left and we were alone.

Sydney sighed and leaned back into the bed. She absentmindedly began to rub her large stomach. She suddenly doubled over and clenched her teeth together. A low moan escaped her mouth.

I jumped up and ran over to her. "Are you okay?"

The contraction subsided and she nodded. "It's fine."

"You sure you don't want that epidural?"

"No. You know I can't." She bit her lip and traced a spot on her neck where her mother used to give her forced injections of a drug called Pluphoria. It had caused Sydney to develop an irrational fear of injections and even give her terrifying nightmares from time to time.

I soothingly massaged her back. "I know. It's okay."

I nervously began tapping my fingers on my knee. Sydney noticed and gave me a concerned smile. "Are _you_ okay?" She nodded at my fingers.

"Oh, um," I pulled my hand in to stop it. "Yeah, totally."

"It's okay to be nervous, Joe." She reached out for my hand. I took it gladly and gave it a loving squeeze.

"I'm not nervous."

She gave me a look showing that she clearly knew I was lying. "Once you hold the baby, you'll realize everything will be okay. You'll feel like you never knew joy before."

"How do you know?" She seemed awfully calm for someone about to have their first child.

She put on that knowing smile again. "I just do. Call it maternal instinct." She pulled my hand closer to place it on her stomach. "Trust me."

I let out an anxious sigh and slowly caressed the baby. How was I supposed to do this? We were so young. I still had a year of college left and any job or internship I could get didn't pay that much. Sydney still had the Draylon card, but only for another few months, and that would only get us so far. I already knew I was going to have make sacrifices to get this to work. I had canceled any lessons I had with my uncle with The Book, not that I had been doing very well anyways. Sam and Fred understood that this also meant we wouldn't be able to hang out as much, but they offered to help in any way that they could. My family had also offered to help us out a lot. I was thankful for all of it, but I knew in the end it all came down to me and Sydney. Would we be able to raise this kid? Would it tear us apart? Could I actually be a good dad?

"So," Sydney spoke, snapping me out of my thoughts, "boy or girl?"

I grinned. Back to this old game.

* * *

><p>"Boy."<p>

"Girl."

"Boy."

"Girl."

I let out a sigh and turned into our parking spot in front of our house. We'd just gotten back from a prenatal appointment. Sydney was a little over twenty weeks old so we had the option of finding out the sex of the baby today, but we decided to wait until it was born to find out. Now we were just arguing about what we thought it was. I wanted a boy, but Sydney kept insisting that it was girl.

"It's a boy."

"It's definitely a girl." She grinned and massaged her baby bump.

"How do you know? Did you look at the screen or do you have a secret deal with the doctor?" I teased her.

Sydney chuckled. "Neither. I just know it's going to be a girl."

"Says who?"

"Says the one who's carrying it."

I sighed and opened the door to our house. Sydney crashed down on the sofa and yawned.

"I think I'm going to take a nap."

I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her. Sydney normally wasn't a very tired person. No matter how late she stayed up, she always woke up early. Yet the pregnancy had taken its toll and she was tired all the time now.

"Can't make it up to our bedroom?"

"Too far." She grabbed a throw pillow and curled up in the corner of the sectional.

I swooped her up into my arms before she could get too comfortable.

She laughed in response. "A little uncomfortable, but I guess I could sleep here."

I rolled my eyes as I carried her upstairs to the master bedroom. "Who said I was going to let you sleep?"

"It's not me, it's our daughter. She's the one who's tired all the time. She's very demanding about getting her sleep. I have no choice but to obey."

"I think you mean our son?" I gently set her down on our enormous and extremely comfortable bed. She wrapped herself up in the deep red satin sheets. I laid down next to her and kissed her forehead gently.

"How about we make this interesting?" She spoke with a smirk on her face.

"I'm listening." I rolled over to her and leaned down, showing off what I hoped was a sexy grin.

She giggled and playfully pushed me away. "That's not what I meant. What if we made a little bet?"

"What's the bet?"

"Whichever one of us is wrong about the gender of the baby, has to handle all late night cries for the first month."

"Deal."

* * *

><p>"I'm just saying, she couldn't have gone into labor at four in the afternoon instead of four in the morning?" Fred yawned and slumped down in his chair.<p>

I rolled my eyes. "We didn't exactly have a choice. I told you that you didn't need to come here yet. The doctor said that it would still be a while."

"And risk missing the birth of my best friend's first kid? No way." He patted me on the shoulder. "I'm here for you, man. I got your back."

"Thanks."

Our friends and my family had slowly been coming in and we were all gathered in the lobby. The room Sydney was in was fairly small so only a few of us could go in at a time. Sydney suggested I go out and get some air and try to distract myself with my friends for a little bit. I'll admit, I needed to unwind. I still felt unprepared for what was about to happen.

Kairi came bouncing out of the room Sydney was in with Cade trailing along calmly behind her. Kairi ran up to me and started talking so fast, I almost couldn't keep up. "Oh my gosh! This is so exciting! You and Sydney are about to become parents! I just know your baby is going to be the cutest thing in the world. I can't wait to find out if it's a boy or a girl! Either way it's going to be amazing! You have to be so excited, right? Like, I know you weren't exactly planning for this and you have absolutely no experience being a father. And you also still have to finish school and get a good job. Wow, how are you going to do all this?"

"Um, Kairi? Why don't we go grab something from the cafeteria?" Cade kindly tried to pull Kairi away.

"Okay. I'm so happy for you!" Kairi waved as she and Cade walked away.

I sighed slumped down into my seat. I rubbed my temples. Kairi meant well, but her little spiel had only left me feeling worse.

"It'll all work out, Joe. You're family offered to help, right?" Sam looked at me with concern.

I groaned. "Yeah, but they can't do everything." I hung my head in hands. "I'm in way over my head."

"Relax. You're over-thinking it. Try focusing on the positive side. You're about to have a little you by your side. That's pretty cool, right?"

I looked at Fred. "I guess."

"What are you guys naming it anyway?"

"Depends on if it's a boy or a girl, and we're not telling anyone until the baby is here."

"Joe?"

I looked up to see who had spoken. My mom and dad walked out of the room. I thought that they seemed a little too happy for people who were about become very young grandparents.

"Sydney was asking for you."

"Okay. Thanks." I slowly got up and started for the room.

My mom stopped me. "It won't be as bad as you think it will. Trust me."

I did my best to smile for her. "Thanks."

When I walked into the room, Anna and Skyler were taking their turn with Sydney.

"Just try not to destroy our reputation."

"With you gone, it'll probably improve."

I felt awkward interrupting Sydney and Skyler's teasing banter, not that I wasn't used to it. This was how they talked to each other all the time.

"Hey. You feeling okay? My mom said you wanted me?" I sat down on the bed next to her and laced my arm over her shoulders.

"I'm fine. The doctor said it wouldn't be too long, so I thought you better be here."

"And that's our cue to leave." Skyler tried to guide Anna out of the room.

"But I thought you were going to help deliver, Sky?"

Skyler stuck his tongue out in disgust. "No thanks. I don't need to know _that _much about you."

Anna giggled and rolled her eyes at them. "I cannot wait to be an aunt. I am going to spoil that kid rotten," she said as they walked out of the room.

"You ready?" Sydney looked at me. She was smiling and seemed completely at ease.

"How are you so calm? This is a scary situation to be in. We're young and we don't know anything about raising a child."

"Joe," she placed her hand on my cheek, "of course this is scary, but it's also exciting and wonderful. We are about to have a beautiful child and become a family. We may not know much, but no one does. Every first time parent has their fears, but they get through it. We will too. We can do this."

Her words soothed my fears. "I'm sorry I have been so weird tonight. I need to focus on what's important and that's making sure you and this baby are happy and healthy." I kissed her and felt her smile into the kiss.

"We'll be okay. I promise."

"I just hope little Aiden gets here soon."

Sydney shook her head. "You're still holding out for it to be a boy?"

"Well, yeah, I'm not going to be the one to take care of all the late night cries for a month."

"We'll see about that."

* * *

><p>"We're not naming it Adrian." Sydney flipped through the pages of the baby name book.<p>

"Why not?" I crossed my arms. "It's a nice name."

"It literally means dark. I'm not naming my child dark."

"It's my kid too."

"But I'm the one who's been carrying it around for the past eight months."

I leaned back into the sofa. "Then how about Jace?"

"Hmm… no."

I sat up and looked over at her. "What's wrong with that?"

"It sounds like something you'd name a dog, not a person."

I rolled my eyes. "Okay then, what do you suggest?"

"I like Nathan, or maybe Alex."

"There's a million Nathans and Alexs out there."

Sydney sighed. "Why is this so hard?" She flipped to a random page in the book and placed her finger down on a random name. She smiled.

"What is it?"

"Aiden. I like it."

"Aiden." I let it roll of my tongue and thought about it for a moment. "Not bad. But what about a middle name?"

"Drake? Aiden Drake. It rolls right off the tongue."

"Aiden Drake." It did have a nice ring to it. I placed my hand on Sydney's protruding stomach. "What do you think little guy?"

I felt the baby kick underneath my hand and grinned. It was always a good feeling.

"I think he likes it." I pulled my hand away.

"Or _she_ is trying to tell you she's a girl and that's not going to work for her." Sydney soothingly massaged her tummy.

"Well, it's not going to be a girl, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to pick out a name for a girl. I like Ava."

Sydney shook her head. "I already have the perfect name. I talked to the baby last night and she seemed to love it." She continued to rub her stomach.

"And what is this perfect name?"

* * *

><p>"Jade Elizabeth Arthur."<p>

Sydney cooed at her softly. Even though I could tell she was exhausted and probably still in pain, she looked so happy to be holding Jade for the first time.

Sydney looked up at me and smiled. She carefully held Jade out for me to take. I took a deep breath. Here we go.

I softly caressed her face as I held her close to my chest. Sydney was right. The moment I touched her, I knew I loved her and would do anything for her. I'd never been this happy in my life.

She was so beautiful. I almost couldn't breathe. My heart was pounding in my chest from fear and joy. She stared back up at me with the most amazing eyes I'd ever seen. They were a light green, fitting given her name, but there were flecks of blue mixed in here and there. Everything about my daughter seemed so perfect and I couldn't wait to see what the future held for us. She had little wisps of light brown hair on top of her small, dark-skinned head.

"Hello, Jade." I had the urge to show her everything in the world. All the wonderful sights and beautiful moments. At the same time, I wanted her all to myself. I knew it was going to be hard just to set her down or hand her back to Sydney, who already looked like she missed having her in her arms.

"Ready to take on every late night cry for a month?" She smirked at me. I saw the exhaustion in her eyes, and yet she still managed to be a tease.

"I can't wait for it."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - I probably should have divided this into two chapters given it's length, but oh well. I was experimenting with a present time to flashback writing style. So yeah, welcome little Jade to the world! If you enjoyed a favourite and a review would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	8. Permission

**Permission**

Sydney stopped the music. "What's up with you? You've never been this off before."

"I'm not off. What are you talking about?" Skyler reached to turn the music back on.

Sydney stopped him. "You're fouette turns are sloppy and you can't even do a double today. Any other day I could ask you to do ten in a row and you'd be fine. Rehearsals for _Chicago_ start next week and you know we're going to have to teach the choreography on day one."

Skyler ran his hand through his hair. "Nothing's wrong with me. Let's just keep going."

Sydney shook her head. "I know you better than that, Sky. What's up?"

"I said I'm fine. Come on, let's continue. Or are you just stopping because you know I'm doing better than you?"

Sydney crossed her arms. "You're cockiness is at like a ten, and I need it at like a two."

"Your sass is at a ten today too."

Sydney glared at him. "What is with you?"

Skyler bit his lip and walked over to his bag. He reached and held something behind his back. "I need your help."

"With the attitude you're having right now? I don't think so."

Skyler sighed. "Please, Syd. I can't do this without you."

Sydney rolled her eyes and dropped her arms. "What is it?"

"I'm going to ask Anna to marry me." He held out a small black box.

Sydney smiled. "_Oh_. That explains it. Well, that's great and all Sky, but why do you need my help? I really doubt Anna will say no to you."

"I'm not worried about _her_ saying no."

"Then what-" Realization spread across Sydney's face. "You want to ask Joe for permission first, don't you?"

"Kind of."

Sydney burst out laughing. "Good luck with that."

"That's why I need your help. I need you to talk to him for me and see if you can soften him up a little bit."

Sydney continued to laugh. "What makes you think I can convince Joe to let you marry his baby sister? You know how he is. Frankly, I'm worried for Jade when she grows up and starts dating."

"Please, Syd! I need this. I love Anna and I want to be with her and marry her more than anything. I see how happy you are with Joe and Jade, and I want that too. I just feel like I need Joe's approval first though."

"Don't you think you're a little young?"

"We're older than you and Joe when you two got married."

"You know our situation was different."

"Not really. I mean, it would have been if Joe knew the truth. Yet you've still kept it a secret from him for all this time."

"I can't tell him at this point."

"You keep telling yourself that."

Sydney sighed. "You're marrying her out of love, right? She's not pregnant or anything is she?"

"No, of course not! _Some_ of us have self-restraint," Skyler teased her.

Sydney tapped her chin. "I don't know. It's an awfully big request and I'm not so sure I like your tone."

Skyler frowned. "Please, Syd? I really, _really_ want this."

Sydney smiled. "I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you."

As if on cue, Jade came skipping into their studio with Joe trying to catch up with her.

"Mommy!" Jade latched onto Sydney's legs. "Daddy took me to the zoo and we saw animals and there were these pengy-, um, peng-, these birds and they went like this!" Jade held her arms out to the side and waddled around the floor like a penguin.

Sydney laughed and scooped Jade up into her arms. "Did they now?"

Jade giggled. "Uh huh. I wanna go again! More animals!" Jade clapped her hands joyously. Jade paused and sniffed the air. "Ew. Mommy stinky." She tried to push herself away from Sydney.

Sydney frowned. "Got to love the honesty of four-year-olds." She set Jade back on the floor. Jade proceeded to run around the dance floor with her penguin impersonation.

"Well, maybe if you weren't so stinky it wouldn't be a problem." Skyler crossed his arms.

"Like you smell like a bed of roses right now." Sydney reached for a small towel to wipe off her sweaty forehead.

"I think you smell wonderful." Joe kissed Sydney and slipped his arm around her waist.

Sydney rolled her eyes. "Compared to animals you've been around all day, I'm sure I do."

"Mommy, I'm hungry." Jade pouted her lip and rubbed her belly. "I want ice cream!"

"You know the rules. You get ice cream after dinner. How about a make you a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for now?"

Jade gave Sydney her best puppy dog eyes. "_Please_?"

Sydney put her hands on her hips. "No, Jade."

Jade crossed her arms and pouted. "Fine."

"How about I go make her some lunch and you stay here and talk to Joe?" Skyler's eye pleaded with Sydney.

"Okay, but make sure she doesn't trick you into giving her ice cream or something."

Skyler led Jade down stairs to the kitchen. Sydney walked over to the wall and slid down to the floor.

"Man, my feet are killing me today." She began to rub her foot.

"Talk to me about what?" Joe followed her over to the wall.

"Well, I'd love to tell you, but my feet here are _really_ sore and could use some attention. I don't know if I could go on like this." She feigned slumping over and pretended to be dying.

Joe rolled his eyes. He sat down in front of Sydney and grab one of her feet. He gently began to massage it. "So what is it you need to talk to me about?"

"I want you to think before you say anything."

"Okay?"

"Skyler wants to ask Anna to marry him."

"No."

"Joe, I said to think before you answered me."

"I don't need to. They're too young and Anna doesn't even need to be thinking about getting married."

"They're older than we were."

"That doesn't count."

Sydney sighed. "Joe, I know you love Anna and you want what's best for her, but Sky is just that. You see how happy they are together. They love each other just as much as you and I do. Think about how happy they would be if they got married."

"I can't let my little sister get married. If they get married they'll go on a honeymoon and I definitely don't want that."

"Joe, Skyler is going to ask Anna to marry him no matter what. You know Anna will say yes. He just wants your permission before he does it."

Joe dropped Sydney's foot. "Why do they even want to get married? Is Anna pregnant?" Joe looked like he was ready to beat Skyler.

"No, no. Calm down. They want to get married because they love each other and marriage is the next step in their relationship."

Joe ran his hand through his hair. "I don't know."

"Skyler has never done anything to hurt Anna. Have you ever seen Anna happier than when she is with Skyler?" Sydney placed her hands on Joe's face to draw his attention to her.

Joe thought about it for second. "I guess not."

"All I'm asking is that you be fair and when Skyler comes back to ask you for permission to marry Anna, you say yes. There is nothing wrong with them getting married."

"Fine. But I will be giving him a little talk along with it."

"I never said you couldn't." Sydney smiled and kissed Joe on the cheek. "Thank you. Now, I believe you forgot about my other foot?" She held up her foot in Joe's face. He rolled his eyes again and began to massage her other foot.

Jade and Skyler soon came back upstairs. Each happily munching on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"I wanna foot rub too, daddy!" Jade ran over to Sydney and Joe. She plopped down next to Sydney and raised her feet in the air. She wiggled her toes and giggled.

"Are you sure about that?" Joe grabbed her feet and began tickling her.

Jade squealed and tried to get away, but she was giggling too hard.

Sydney grinned and laughed at the two of them. She noticed Skyler awkwardly rocking back and forth behind them. "Hey, Jade, how about you and I go downstairs? I could read you some of your favourite book."

Jade looked up from her fit of giggles. "Okay." She bounced up and ran into Sydney's arms.

Sydney gave Joe one final look before leaving. "_Be nice_."

"So, um," Skyler did his best to be his confident self, but he was failing. "I'm sure Syd already told you."

"Yes." Joe stood up and crossed his arms. He puffed out his chest trying to be as intimidating as possible.

Skyler squared his shoulders and took a deep breath. "I want to marry Anna. I love her more than anything in this world. I know you love her too, and I think it's great that you're such a good big brother to her. I understand I'm not your favourite person and that my relationship with Anna makes you uncomfortable, but we've been together for years now and I've never done anything to hurt her or put her danger, and I never will. I am going to ask Anna to marry me no matter what you say, but I think it will be a lot better for everyone if you're okay with it. So Joe, can I have permission to marry your sister?"

Joe remained silent while staring down Skyler, silently judging him.

"Yes."

Skyler perked up. "Really? That means so much, you have no idea."

"But," Joe stepped forward into Skyler's face, who shrunk away, "if you do anything to harm Anna or so much as draw a single tear from her eye, I will step in and you do _not_ want that. You are to give Anna the upmost respect and treat her like a lady. If I hear one complaint from her, you're gone."

"Of course!" Skyler shook off the feeling of fear that came over him. "Thank you so much. I promise you won't regret this." He held his hand out for Joe to shake. When Joe didn't take it, he awkwardly dropped it by his side. "I'll just be going then."

He and Joe silently went downstairs to the living room. Sydney was sitting on the sofa with Jade curled up in her lap. Sydney held a purple book in her hands with pictures of animals sprawled out on the cover.

"How'd it go?" Sydney paused from reading to Jade to look up at Skyler.

"Great. I got to go." Skyler walked to the door.

"But we still have to choreo-" Sydney sighed as Skyler left the house without looking back. She turned to Joe. "I take that to mean you said yes?"

"I think I made a mistake." Joe leaned forward as if he was going to follow Skyler out to tell him that he changed his mind.

"Joe, don't. It'll be okay."

"_Mommy, book_." Jade whined and tugged on Sydney's arm.

"I know, sweetie. One second."

Joe walked over and sat down next to them. "I hope you're right."

* * *

><p>"Boo." Skyler popped his head down in front of Anna.<p>

She feigned being scared. "Oh no! What ever will I do? Where's my knight in shining armor when I need him?

"I locked him up. He's currently being tortured by an endless loop of 'Wheels on the Bus'."

"Oh well. It was only a matter of time." She looked Skyler up and down. "I guess you'll just have to be my new boyfriend."

"I'd be honored." He leaned in to give her a deep kiss.

Anna laughed as they broke apart. "I thought you and Sydney were working all day today. Don't you have to teach choreography next week?"

"I needed to leave early. After all, I have a date tonight."

"You do?" Anna raised an eyebrow at him.

"Mhm, but don't tell my girlfriend. It's a surprise." Skyler winked at her.

Anna grinned. "You're secret's safe with me."

"I knew I could trust you."

"So when is this date?"

"Now actually."

"Now?" Anna got up from the chair she was sitting in. "A little extra warning wouldn't have hurt, you know."

"It's part of the fun."

"Where are we even going? I'm going to have to get ready." Anna quickly adjusted her hair as she headed towards the bathroom.

"No need. It's a private date."

"Private?"

Skyler nodded. "I have something extra special planned for us tonight."

"Oh?"

"Why don't I just show you?"

* * *

><p>"Holy…" Anna was at a loss for words.<p>

"The perks of living in a penthouse, exclusive rooftop access. Syd and I used to rehearse up here. I always thought that with a little decorating, it could look magical."

Magical didn't even begin to describe it. Anna felt like see had just stepped into a mystical forest. She definitely didn't feel like they were standing on top of a building in the middle of Manhattan. Trees lined the edge of the roof. Lights were strung tree to tree and emitted a soft golden glow. Stars weren't something you saw a lot of in New York with all the bright city lights, but all the string lights created the effect of staring up into a starry night sky.

In the middle of the roof a sheer canopy was set up surrounded by white candles. Pillows were placed inside the canopy and despite the fact that the roof's floor was made of hard wood, it looked like the coziest place in the world.

"Skyler, this is astounding. How did you do all this?" Anna stared up at him with wonder in her eyes.

He shrugged. "I want tonight to be special. I'm glad you like it." He loved seeing her this elated.

"I love it. It's so different from anything else we've ever done. But what's so special about tonight?" She stared at him with a perplexed look on her face.

"You'll see." He led her over to the pillows. They sat down and snuggled up to each other.

"It's so beautiful." The surrounding canopy put them in their own private world, complete with their own stars and night sky to gaze into.

"Just like you."

Anna blushed. "So why all this? I have to know." She turned to sit on her knees and stare into Skyler's eyes.

"Well," he paused to reach for something in his pocket, "I love you, Anna. I love you more than anything else in this entire universe." He grabbed her hand. "I want the world to know it. I want to wake up next to you every day and fall asleep next to you every night." He pulled out a small black box and opened it to reveal a dazzling diamond ring. He heard Anna gasp. "Anna Arthur, will you marry me?"

"Yes!" She wrapped Skyler up in a tight hug and showered him with kisses.

He laughed as he slipped the ring on her finger. "I'm so thrilled that you said yes."

"Why wouldn't I? I love you." She pulled him to give him a lingering kiss.

"I know, but I had a crazy day. I wanted to get Joe's permission before I married you."

"You asked my brother for permission to marry me?" Anna stopped in thought. "And he said yes?"

Skyler nodded. "I'm still surprised too. Syd kind of helped me out a little though."

"Tell her I said thank you." Anna looked down at the ring on her finger. She shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe that just happened."

"The night's not over yet. I'd hate to have this whole set up go to waste."

Anna giggled. "It's beautiful, really. I don't think I could ever forget this night. I love you so much."

"I love you too."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - I really like their silly/goofy relationship. It was fun to write. :) One more chapter in here left before I start posting _Sour Revenge_! If you liked, a review and a favorite would be very much loved! Thanks for reading!**


	9. Round Two

**Round Two**

"How come I don't have a baby sister?" Jade asked nonchalantly as she was getting tucked in by Sydney.

"Um…" Sydney looked over her shoulder at Joe. They exchange quizzical looks. "Why would you ask that, sweetheart?"

"Missy was talking about her baby sister. She says it's like a fun toy."

"Having a baby sister is a lot more than that, Jade." Joe walked over to her bed. "It's a big responsibility. Not to mention, a lot of work for mommy and me."

Sydney nodded. "Besides, you just had a birthday. You have plenty of toys now anyway. You don't need a baby sister."

"But I want one. I'd be good with her. I promise!" Jade pleaded and put on her best doe-eyed look. "_Please_?"

"Maybe in a few years, Jade." Sydney bent down to kiss her forehead. "Goodnight."

Jade snuggled down into her sheets. "Nighty night."

Sydney and Joe turned off her bedroom light and walked towards their own bedroom down the hall.

"Where did that come from?" Sydney turned to Joe. "She wants a sister now?"

Joe grinned and kissed her on the lips. "We could you know."

"Could what? Have another kid? Joe, no. We can't just have another kid like that."

"Why not?"

Sydney sat down on their bed. "Because I'm incredibly busy at the moment. Tech week starts tomorrow and opening night is in two weeks. Plus, Anna wants me to help her pick stuff out for the wedding. I do not have time to deal with another child. I love Jade, but she's enough for now."

Joe laughed and sat down next to her. "Well, technically you wouldn't have to deal with another kid for nine months."

"You're right. I'd have to deal with pregnancy symptoms. Not exactly something I want to go through with at the moment." She laid back and stretched out on the bed. "If you really want have another kid, we can try in a few years."

"Years? Jade will already be four years older than her brother."

"Brother?" Sydney lifted her head. "Is this about you wanting another kid, or you wanting a son?" She cocked an eyebrow at him.

"A little bit of both. I love Jade, but another guy in the house would be nice." He laid down next to her on the bed and ran a hand through her soft hair. "Come on. Let's have another kid. It'll be so much easier. I'm out of college and I actually have a job now."

"But we no longer have an unlimited supply of money."

"We have enough money to have another baby."

Sydney rolled her eyes. "Not now, okay? We can talk about this in a month and maybe we can try to have a kid then."

"In a month you'll be busy doing seven shows a week plus pick-up rehearsals. And the month after that, and the month after that. You're never not busy with a show. When it's off season all you do is choreograph shows for the next season. If being busy is your only excuse, we'll never have another child."

Sydney sighed. "I know. I just have a lot on my plate being a choreographer and a swing for _Chicago_. It's not that I wouldn't mind having another kid, it was just so hard with Jade and managing all the things I have to do. I'm not sure I can do that again."

"But I'm out of school now. I can help out a lot more than I could with Jade. It wouldn't be all on you this time." Joe did his best impersonation of Jade's doe-eyes. "_Please_?"

Sydney laughed. "Sorry, Joe. Not now. We can talk about it again after the show kicks off and I'm less busy during the day."

"Fine." Joe kissed her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

Sydney giggled and pulled away. "Did you hear me? I said in a month."

"Doesn't mean we still can't have some fun." Joe winked at her and rolled her over for another kiss.

* * *

><p>"Oh, look, Jade! Daddy's home! He's going to play with you now and make the shiny disappear." Sydney hurriedly ran over to Joe, who had just walked through the door, and pulled him over to Jade.<p>

"But mommy, I wanna see more spin-spins!"

"Mommy is going to be sick-sick if she does any more spin-spins." Sydney collapsed onto the couch.

"Hey Jade, what's that behind your ear?" Joe distracted her by doing his classic quarter trick.

Jade rubbed her ears and giggled. She happily clapped her hands and asked for more. Joe picked her up and sat down next to Sydney on the couch.

"I'm never choreographing a pirouette into a dance ever again," Sydney moaned.

Joe chuckled as he played with the quarter for Jade. "But you're so good at the spin-spins."

"Spin-spins!" Jade agreed and giggled some more.

"Just hearing it makes me sick."

Joe laughed some more. "You'll be fine and you know it."

"No, I really think I'm going to be sick." Sydney sat up and held a hand over her mouth.

"Are you-" Before Joe could even finish his question, Sydney had bolted off to the bathroom.

Jade pouted. "Where is mommy?"

"She'll be okay. Why don't you be good and play with toys for a minute while daddy goes to check on her, okay?"

Jade still appeared upset. "Okay."

Joe carefully set her down within eyesight of the bathroom door. He quickly went to check on Sydney.

"Are you feeling okay?"

Sydney was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall across from the toilet. "Does it look like I'm okay?" She hung her head between her knees. "I think I'm going to go lie down."

Joe helped her up and walked her over to their bedroom. "Anything I can do? Do you want me to make a doctor's appointment?"

"Actually-"

"Mommy?" Jade stood in their doorway nervously tugging on her brown hair. She cautiously walked over to Sydney and crawled onto her lap. "I'm sorry. Spin-spins are bad for mommy."

Sydney smiled and brushed Jade's hair away from her face. "It's not your fault, sweetie. Mommy is sick for a different reason."

"She is?" Joe tilted his head in confusion.

Sydney nodded towards the bathroom attached to their room. "Go see for yourself."

As Joe was walking towards the bathroom he heard Sydney tell Jade it was time for a nap. Jade protested like usual, but went with Sydney anyway.

Joe walked into the bathroom to see what Sydney was referring to. At first glance, he saw nothing. He looked closer and noticed something sitting on the counter next to the sink.

_Oh_.

"Congratulations," a voice that was dripping with sarcasm spoke. Joe turned over his shoulder to see Sydney standing behind him leaning against the door-frame. "You get your wish. Looks like we're having another baby."

Joe held back his smile. He knew he shouldn't be this elated, especially since Sydney was probably distressed about it, but he couldn't help but feel a little joy bounce around inside his chest.

He looked back at the pregnancy test laying on the counter. It had a bright pink plus sign, which could only mean one thing: Sydney was pregnant again.

* * *

><p>"So Jade, remember how you said you wanted a baby sister?"<p>

Sydney and Joe sat on either side of Jade on her bed. They'd been debating on how long to wait to tell her about the baby and how exactly to do it.

"I don't want one." Jade continued to flip through the pages of a large picture book sitting in front of her.

Joe and Sydney exchanged concerned glances. "Why don't you want anymore? You were so determined to have one before."

"Missy says her sister took her parents. Now they don't play anymore." Jade stared up at her parents. "I'm not sharing you with a stupid sister."

"Well, sweetie, mommy and daddy may have already put an order in with the stork for a new baby."

"And we can't cancel it."

"But I don't want one anymore." Jade's eyes widened. "Can't we give it to somebody else?"

"Not exactly."

"But, but, you won't love me if there's another baby." Tears welled up in Jade's soft green eyes.

"No, no, sweetheart." Sydney picked Jade up and held her close. "We will always love you. Another baby won't change that."

"But I'm your baby."

They smiled down at her. "You will always be our special little girl, but every little girl has to grow up sometime. You'll be able to teach your little sibling everything you know, and they'll look up to you. You have to protect and help them though. That's part of the responsibility of being a big sister."

Jade sniffled. "You won't stop loving me?"

"Never. We'll just have a new baby to love just as much, and you'll love your brother or sister too."

"Brother?" Jade stuck her tongue out. "No boys. Boys are weird."

Joe frowned. "What about me?"

Jade giggled at him. "You're the weirdest one."

"Boys aren't all that bad. You might really enjoy having a brother," Joe tried to reason with her.

Jade shook her head. "No boys. And only one baby. I'm not sharing you any more than that."

Sydney kissed Jade on her forehead. "We'll see what the stork brings us."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - So this is the last chapter before_ Sour Revenge_, which takes place a couple months after this. Hopefully, the first chapter for that will be up this week. This story will continue to be updated alongside _Sour Revenge_ with request stories and random stuff. The other chapters in here after this probably won't be chronological. For instance, a few might take place when the trio is in high school or something like that.**

**If you enjoyed a review and a favourite would be very much loved! Follow me for more! Thanks for reading!**


	10. The Break-Up

**Writer25's Challenge: The Break-Up**

"You what?"

"Don't make me repeat it."

"You…" Joe had to physically hold himself down by gripping onto the kitchen counter. "When?"

"Yesterday afternoon."

"Is that why you came home so late? You told me it was because your rehearsal ran longer than you expected."

Sydney bit her lip.

"Answer me!" Joe shouted.

"Joe, please. Jade is-"

"Oh, now you think about Jade? She didn't cross your mind at all yesterday? Our marriage – four years – didn't cross you mind? What the hell were you thinking about then?"

"Nothing. I mean, I-"

"_Get out_."

"What?"

"You heard me. I want you out of this house. Now." Joe pointed towards the door for emphasis.

"This is _my_ house. I bought it. You can't just-"

"Well I am! I can't look at you right now let alone be in the same house as you."

"But Jade-"

"I don't want you around her either."

Sydney glared at him. "You can't take my daughter away from me because of some mistake I made."

"_Some_ mistake?" Joe clenched his teeth and balled up his fists. He could feel his nails digging into his palms, but he didn't care. "This isn't just some mistake. For the love of God, you cheated on me!"

"Joe, I'm sorry. We can get through this. I can find a marriage counselor and-"

"You're sorry? What's sorry supposed to fix? I told you to leave, now do it before I wake up Jade and take her with me somewhere else."

"Would you please let me explain?"

"Explain what? I don't want to know the details! It happened and there's no way to go back now. For the last time, get out of this house!" Joe stomped to the front door and yanked it open. "Out. Now."

Tears welled up in Sydney's eyes. "Joe, please…"

Joe fought the urge to fall apart and cry with her. "I said, out." He pointed outside.

"Where am I supposed to go?"

"I don't know and I don't care. You're not my wife anymore."

Sydney looked out the door and back at Joe. "You don't have to do this."

"You didn't have to sleep with another man either, but you did! Get out before I physically have to remove you."

"You have a son." Sydney blurted out.

"Don't make up lies to try to get me to change my mind. It won't work." Joe glared at her in disgust.

"I'm not lying, I swear! His name is JJ and he's seven years old. I was pregnant with him back when I was still at Draylon. I never told you because-"

"I'm tired of this." Joe pushed his way past her and started up the stairs.

"Joe, no! Wait!" Sydney followed him up. "Please, don't take her from me. You and Jade are all I have!" She grabbed onto his arm in an attempt to stop him.

Joe shook her off. "What about your _friend_?"

"It meant nothing! I swear! It was a moment of weakness and we both just got so caught up in it all."

Joe cringed. "I said I didn't want to hear about it." He paused outside of Jade's bedroom door. "I will tell you one final time, get out of this house or I'm taking Jade somewhere else until you pack up and leave."

Sydney froze. She stared at Jade's door, tears streaming down her face. "Can I at least say goodbye?"

"No."

The word hit her like a slap across the face. "But I- I-" Sydney choked back sobs.

Joe looked away, not wanting to pity her. It was cruel to let her cry like this, but he didn't care. She deserved it. "You brought this on yourself."

"I know." She clenched and unclenched her fists. "I just wish…"

"So do I." Joe gave her a long, cold stare. "Are you leaving or not?"

"I'll go." She wiped the tears from her eyes. "What are you going to tell Jade when she wakes up and I'm not here?"

"That her mother had to go away for a little bit. She was clearly not feeling well in the head. And that sometimes parents don't always stay together forever."

"Tell her that I love her."

"You're not in a position to tell me what to do."

Sydney looked up at him and pleaded, "It's my final request. Promise me that Jade will not learn the truth. I didn't do this out of spite. I still love her… and you."

Joe's mouth was set in a hard line. "Is that all?"

Sydney held back more tears. "Yes."

"Then get out."

* * *

><p><strong>AN - so this was a writing challenge given to me by Writer25 a while ago where one of my main couples has a fight and breaks up. I decided to have some fun with it and make it extra nasty. This is obviously not canon to my series however, so just enjoy it for what it is, a random angry one-shot. Sorry it's a little on the short side, but I enjoyed writing it.**

**If you enjoyed, a favourite would be very much loved! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this by leaving a lovely review/critique! Follow me for more! Thanks for reading!**

**BTW - if you want to issue me a challenge/request, they are still OPEN so feel free to do it! More info on my profile.**


	11. Date Night

**Hair-Metal-Angel's Request: Date Night**

Joe finished styling his hair and studied himself in the mirror. "Looking good as always." He flashed himself a dazzling smile.

The doorbell rang and Joe took his time to answer it. He knew any girl world gladly wait for him.

He opened the door and leaned against the frame. "Hello, Tally"

He looked her up and down. She looked stunning as always. Not that Joe expected anything less. Of course, any girl would look their best for a date with him.

"Hey, Joe." Tally's wide gold eyes sparkled as she stared up at him. "May I come in?"

"Sure." Joe stepped aside and took this opportunity to study her more.

Her waist-long black hair swayed as she walked past him and into his house. She wore it down with a gold headband in it that matched her eyes. Her tan skin glowed underneath the gold and white striped blouse she was wearing.

"So where are we going?" Tally smiled at him.

"The movies. Maybe we'll grab some pizza beforehand."

Tally tilted her head. "The movies? You finally get to go on a date with me, and you just want to go to the movies?"

Joe nodded and winked at her. "Don't worry. You're going to love it. I'll make sure of it. It's this new action movie that's supposed to be great." He threw his arm around her shoulders. "I've been looking forward to this. I'm not going to mess it up that easily."

He leaned in for a kiss, thinking she'd gladly accept.

Tally pushed him away. "What do you think you're doing? She crossed her arms stepped away.

"I just thought-"

"The date hasn't even started yet. Maybe if it's good, I'll let you have a kiss at the end."

"Fine," Joe pouted. "Let's get going. I'm starving."

He put his arm back around her and led her out the door.

* * *

><p>The waitress came to take their orders.<p>

Joe puffed out of his chest. "Hello, cutie."

The waitress blushed. "Hello, sir. What would you like to eat?"

"One large pepperoni, please." He winked at her. "Extra sauce if you would be so kind."

"Of course." The waitress giggled as she walked away.

Tally frowned. "Cutie?"

Joe shrugged. "What? Flirting with the waitresses is fun. They usually give you discounts and stuff. Don't worry, she's not as cute as you are."

"Okay." Tally uncertainly took a sip of her drink. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"You." Joe leaned forward and gave her a flirty grin.

Tally smirked. "What about me?"

"Everything. What's it like being so pretty?" He threw her a wink.

"Well, I-"

"Hey, Joe!" A pair of flirtatious voices floated over to them from across the room. Two girls walked up to them. They were both gorgeous, something Joe immediately noticed.

"Hey, you two. How's it going?" Joe gave them each his full attention.

"Well, we were wanting to get some pizza, but every booth and table in here is full," they pouted. "Can we sit with you?" They amorously pushed their chests out and played with their hair. They pleaded to Joe with wide eyes.

Tally was about to point out that there were in fact several empty booths to sit at, but before she could even open her mouth, Joe told them he'd love it if they joined him.

Tally huffed. She crossed her arms and glared at the intruders.

Joe shifted so that he could have a girl on each side of him. The girl on his left had long blonde hair with bangs that framed the right side of her face. She batted her long lashes over her bright blue eyes. She ran a tan hand down Joe's arm, letting it rest on his thighs. "Thanks so much."

"Yeah, we were worried we wouldn't going to get any food," the girl on his right added. She had long, wavy brown hair and dark eyes that sparkled as she looked up at Joe. She placed a dark skinned hand on his shoulder. "We really appreciate it."

"Anytime ladies. Anything for two beautiful girls like you." He put his arms around their shoulders and they giggled in response, each continuing to toy with their hair.

Tally cleared her throat. "Excuse me?" The two girls blinked at her, as if they just now noticed she was present. "Joe and I are kind of on a date. So if you could both leave, that would be nice."

"A date?" The girls looked to Joe. "Is this true?"

"Well…" Joe scratched the back of his neck. "I don't see any harm in you two joining us for a little bit. Right, Tally?"

"As long as you don't forget which one of us you're on a date with." Tally frowned.

"Don't be upset, Tally. We can all have fun together. You're all lovely ladies."

The girls next to Joe giggled. "Oh, Joe. You're too sweet."

"And cute."

Joe had a smug grin on his face. "You two are amazing, you know that?"

They giggled again. "Not as amazing as you."

"Well, that's impossible," Joe said, his grin growing.

"Maybe this date was a bad idea." Tally got up to leave.

Joe jumped up. "No, stay. We're just having fun, right girls?"

"We can have whatever you want, Joey." The girls leaned into him.

"Really? Well, I'd love to-"

"This was definitely a bad idea." Tally gathered up her stuff. "Last chance, Joe. It's me or them."

"Um…" Joe looked between the girls. "Can't we all just-"

"Goodbye."

"Tally, wait!" But it was too late. She had already left him.

* * *

><p>"And then she left me." Joe sighed an unhappily ate his lunch.<p>

Fred and Sam burst out laughing.

"What? It's not funny!" Joe frowned and crossed his arms.

"Yes, it is."

"How did you not see that coming?" They continued to laugh.

"I thought she'd be cool with it. It's not like I was making out with them or anything." Joe looked around to see if Tally was going to join them. He saw her sitting with a group of girls across the room. Guess that's a no then, he thought.

"You might as well have been. You're too flirty for your own good."

"Yeah, you're lucky all Tally did was leave. One of these days a girl to going to smack you for your cockiness."

Joe grumbled, "I am not cocky." He returned to eating his lunch with a pout on his face while Sam and Fred continued to laugh at him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN - this was a request given to me by Hair-Metal-Angel where her OC, Tally, goes on a date with a Joe, but he loses her due to his overly flirty/cocky behavior. If you enjoyed a favourite would be very much loved! Let me know what you thought with a review/critique! Follow me for more! Thanks for reading!**

**Requests and challenges are still OPEN if you're interested! See my profile for more info!**


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